Revealed: Britain’s hospitals are ashamed of being so run down they are ‘downright dangerous’, say NHS chiefs

Several NHS hospitals are now so dilapidated that they pose a serious risk to the safety of patients and staff, internal health service documents have revealed.

Facilities named and shamed include Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport, three hospitals in Doncaster and Bassetlaw, Croydon Hospital in south London and multiple hospitals run by Barts Health Trust, also in the capital.

Hazards include fires, flooding from outdated pipes and tanks, electrical problems and even potentially dangerous bacterial infections from rotting infrastructure.

Patients considered at risk include cancer patients, patients receiving life-saving care and even some specialist services caring for vulnerable babies.

A body representing senior NHS leaders said some hospitals are now so dilapidated that ‘patients are being treated in unsafe and sometimes downright dangerous facilities’.

The findings, from a Guardian Analysis has found that 13 areas of Stepping Hill Hospital are at serious risk of ‘imminent collapse’.

This includes a pathology unit, mortuary, cancer unit, breast clinic, data center and electricity substation.

Minutes of a Stockport NHS Foundation Trust meeting also reveal that the hospital’s intensive care unit, where the most critically ill patients are treated, is at risk of leaking from a technical room above.

The documents also warn that the trust is likely to face a growing number of lawsuits from staff and patients as a result of its declining infrastructure.

Hazards include fires, flooding from outdated pipes and tanks, electrical problems and even potentially dangerous bacterial infections from rotting infrastructure. Pictured is an example of pipework in an NHS hospital

A body representing senior NHS leaders said some hospitals are now so dilapidated that ‘patients are being treated in unsafe and sometimes downright dangerous facilities’. Featured clips from an ITV investigation into dilapidated NHS infrastructure last year

Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is facing issues that pose an ‘increased risk to life’ due to inadequate levels of fire-resistant material designed to slow the spread of a fire and allow time for evacuation.

The Trust, based in South Yorkshire, is also facing problems with its cold water storage tanks, which are now so old and in disrepair that they are at high risk of producing legionella bacteria, which can cause fatal diseases.

In addition, the ventilation systems that control airflow in operating rooms and ‘other critical areas’ are now unfit for purpose and at risk of breaking down.

Finally, the electrical infrastructure is considered so old that the Trust has warned it could fail and disrupt clinical care.

At Croydon hospital, NHS documents warn it is facing problems with its internal supply of chemotherapy drugs following the closure of the facility that makes these crucial drugs for refurbishment.

Although hospital bosses have outsourced the supply of these drugs to the private sector in the meantime, they are concerned this will not keep up with demand.

Thirteen areas of Stepping Hill Hospital are at serious risk of ‘imminent collapse’

Croydon hospital is also said to have rotting sockets in critical areas such as operating theatres, a special care baby unit and an X-ray department.

Fellow London trust Barts Health, one of the country’s largest, is also facing problems at some of the five hospitals it runs.

This includes “insufficient body freezing areas to prevent decomposition of patients in storage” and water leaks that pose a risk to staff safety.

Newham General Hospital is specifically mentioned as a hospital with problems because the cladding there ‘does not meet building regulations’ for fire safety.

Another Barts hospital facing infrastructure problems is Whipps Cross Hospital.

This facility is considered a flood risk due to improper drainage and an electrical safety hazard.

Alarmingly, trust documents specifically point out a risk to babies due to the age of specialist equipment designed to help them breathe when they need to.

It comes as Matthew Taylor, chief executive of healthcare organization NHS Confederation, said the problems with the NHS’s run-down estate were due to what he called “decades of underinvestment” in the service’s renovations budget.

Another Barts hospital facing infrastructure problems is Whipps Cross hospital, where there are problems with equipment used by vulnerable babies to breathe

Commenting on the report, Health Minister Andrew Gwynne said he blamed the previous government for the problems.

‘Years of neglect and underinvestment left NHS buildings crumbling, staff forced to use outdated, creaking equipment and patients paying the price. It is unacceptable for patients to be treated under these conditions,” he said.

NHS data shows that the current estimate for fixing all currently needed repairs is £13.8 billion.

Of these, £2.7 billion is considered ‘high risk’, meaning they are so urgent that if left unaddressed there is a risk of catastrophic failure, major disruption to clinical services and safety issues that could lead to injury.