Parts of ceilings have fallen in at two key units of a decrepit NHS hospital, forcing it to evacuate patients and cancel X-rays and scans, the Guardian can reveal.
The problems at Stepping Hill hospital in Stockport, which is plagued by leaks and major structural defects, have prompted claims it is “dangerous for both patients and staff”.
The first partial ceiling collapse occurred on 4 March in the Stockport hospital’s radiology department because of a leak, which meant it had to cancel several scheduled procedures. The trust refused to disclose how many appointments were affected.
The second collapse happened the next day in its critical care unit, where seriously ill patients receiving intensive and high-dependency care are treated.
Staff had to move quickly to get patients out of the 13-bed unit to ensure no one was hurt. Evacuated patients were initially cared for in some of Stepping Hill’s 20 operating theatres. Some were then transferred to a nearby hospital while repairs were carried out.
“These reports from Stepping Hill are both shocking and depressing,” said Dr Rob Barnett, the chair of the British Medical Association’s north-west regional council. “That staff are working and seeing patients in these conditions is completely unacceptable.”
Both were classed as “business continuity” events, which is the NHS’s way of describing incidents that involve serious disruption to its provision of medical care.
The latest problems are laid bare in a report by Stockport NHS trust’s chief executive, Karen James, presented at its most recent board meeting on 4 April.
She told the board how, besides the closure of an outpatient unit because it was deemed unsafe, “we have also suffered unexpected and unrelated ceiling collapses in our critical care unit and radiology department, caused by leaks from the heating system.
“The critical care unit had to be evacuated but no patients suffered harm thanks to the prompt actions of our staff. The leak in the radiology department did cause the cancellation of some appointments.” Both units had to shut temporarily for urgent remedial work.
James also warned that “estates problems are more frequently impacting our services … we are likely to experience more business continuity issues as the result of our ageing buildings”.
Stepping Hill is facing further disruption because its crumbling infrastructure means that:
It had to close its Outpatient B unit last November after inspectors reported a “significant deterioration of the structure of the building”.
It is providing only 51% of the outpatient appointments it should because some of the services that were provided in that now-mothballed unit are now operating at less than the previous capacity.
Staff in some areas have to form “bucket squads” when it rains to stop water causing flooding and affecting vital equipment.
It has had to reschedule 99 operating theatre sessions – involving orthopaedics, general surgery and gynaecology – while it builds a new emergency and urgent care campus.
Tom Morrison, a local Liberal Democrat councillor, said: “Important operations are being postponed by weeks because the buildings are decaying.”
The Stockport trust wants to replace the hospital – parts of which were built in 1903 – with an entirely new facility. It does not have enough money to undertake all the repairs it deems necessary. However, it has been forced to continue providing services from its crumbling facility after its application to become one of the 40 projects in the government’s “new hospitals programme” in England, which the then prime minister, Boris Johnson, promised in 2019 to build by 2030, was rejected.
Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrats’ health spokesperson, said: “Cheadle and Stockport residents deserve to be treated in a safe, clean, modern hospital. But, under this Conservative government, they are left with a local hospital that has become dangerous for both patients and staff.
“No patient should fear for their safety while receiving treatment in hospital. But, across the country, we are seeing NHS buildings crumbling and ceilings collapsing. It is downright irresponsible that the government has failed to address this situation. Rishi Sunak must provide urgent funding so that Stepping Hill hospital can make the repairs it needs.”
A Stockport NHS Trust spokesperson said: “Leaks are a relatively common occurrence across a large and diverse estate, made up of different aged buildings, infrastructure and condition. We regularly survey the estate to measure the condition and help us direct investment to the appropriate area. It is common for small repairs to convert into larger more complex work, up to and including roof replacement.”
