Hospital rejects too-rude nightgowns

A pyjama pilot to protect the modesty of patients in Dudley has been postponed after hospital bosses were forced to send back trial samples of the clothes because they were too revealing.

The unisex nightwear is planned as an alternative to traditional gowns at Russells Hall Hospital which are open at the rear.

But the new pyjamas were too big and 'gaping' so bosses have now been forced to go back to the drawing board and will meet suppliers to discuss changes next month.

Chief executive Paula Clark said the pyjama samples they had received from the hospital's laundry firm were not suitable for women because they were too big.

She said: "Patient privacy and dignity is very important to The Dudley Group of Hospitals and the trust has received samples of pyjamas from our laundry provider. We are not satisfied with the samples because the suggested unisex design is not suitable for women.

"The pyjamas gape in both the top and trousers and they are only offered from the supplier in large sizes at the moment. We are setting up a meeting for early October to discuss further. Once a sample has been agreed, we will start trialling them."

Patients and staff will be asked to give feedback on the new pyjamas once the pilot begins. If they are well received, the trial will be widened out. Traditional hospital gowns have long been an embarrassment for patients because of their tendency to gape open at the back, bosses say.

The cost of the pyjamas has not yet been revealed.

Bosses have spent almost £23,000 on new curtains, which are made out of a heavy material and are less likely to gape or blow open, for patient beds.

In September, bosses at Walsall Manor Hospital announced that they would be spending £35,000 on less-revealing gowns for their patients.

The outlay was part of a £1.4 million scheme to improve "privacy and dignity" for those staying at the hospital that also saw the loss of six beds.

Meanwhile more than £4 million will be spent on extra medical staff at Russells Hall Hospital to help cope with soaring patient numbers.

Bosses are looking to recruit extra consultants, nurses and clinical support workers in 2010-11. Almost 16,000 more inpatients and outpatients than planned were treated last year, and numbers are expected to continue to rise.

The hospital trust is aiming to bolster departments including surgery and anaesthetics, trauma and orthopaedics, dermatology and genito-urinary medicine.

Bosses will also be spending £8.7m on new medical equipment.