Ward was a hell hole, wife claims

A ward at Stafford Hospital has been labelled a "hell hole" by families following a catalogue of neglect of patients who were admitted there.

One dying man on Ward 10 was attacked by a fellow patient who tried to strangle him in the middle of the night, and nurses were heard talking and laughing about patients, some of whom were left to call out for bedpans and painkillers, it was claimed at the inquiry into Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust.

One woman spoke about the treatment her husband, Patient A11, endured in Ward 10 in 2007 after first being admitted via A&E following a fit.

At first he received good treatment in Ward 7 before being transferred to Ward 10 after a brain scan revealed a bad prognosis.

Giving evidence at the inquiry, his widow described Ward 10 as "a hell hole where there was no dignity or care".

She said patients had to call out for bedpans and painkillers.

During his time on the ward her husband was attacked by a fellow patient who tried to strangle him in the middle of the night.

The woman believes she should have been informed of the incident immediately and not just told the following morning when she visited. She raised concerns that a known aggressive patient was placed on a ward without extra security or extra staff. She said her husband died a day later. In another case on Ward 10 a patient complained that nurses were talking and laughing about patients and showing no respect.

And in another case heard last week the family of a woman patient was wrongly told by the hospital she would have to be buried in a sealed body bag for fear of spreading infection.

The family were later informed by the bereavement officer that paperwork had been filled in incorrectly.

The inquiry, which is being chaired by John Francis QC, has been hearing cases of neglect at the hospital between January 2005 and March 2009. It has now adjourned until December when staff from the hospital are expected to begin hearing evidence, and the final report is expected to be completed in January.

The inquiry has been criticised because it has been held in secret.