Hospital trust sacrificed patient care to financial matters, commission says

The government’s flagship policy for hospitals to become foundation trusts has been blamed for staff cuts at one trust that compromised patient safety and led to some patients’ deaths, according to the Healthcare Commission.

Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust “significantly” reduced staff in a bid to save money in its drive to become a foundation trust, which resulted in higher than normal death rates in emergency care, an investigation by the health watchdog has found.

The report said, “Its strategic focus was on financial and business matters at a time when the quality of care of its patients admitted as emergencies was well below acceptable standards.”

Ian Kennedy, the commission’s chairman, said, “This is a …