Altnaglevin Hospital, Londonderry - 22 November 2011

The sanitary areas also had cleaning issues; in the toilets the rim of the
toilet bowl and underneath the raised toilet seat were stained, the
frame of the raised toilet seat was dirty and rusty. The underside of the
taps of the hand washing sink required cleaning. In the bottom shower
room the seal and the edge of the shower door and the shower curtain
were stained; there was mould present in the shower base. The
underside of the toilet seat, the rim of the toilet bowl, and the underside
of the raised seat were all stained.
In both Ward 8 and Ward 31
inspections of bed mattresses
showed that the vinyl covers
and the foam interior were
stained, in Ward 8 a mattress
had a tear and in Ward 31 the
cover had perished (Picture
2).
Picture 2: Ward 31 perished cover on mattress
In all four wards the temperature of the drugs fridge was not recorded
consistently. It is advised that fridge temperature checks are carried
out on a daily basis to ensure medication is kept at the correct
temperature and to identify if a fridge has failed to reach the required
temperature and a cold chain failure has occurred.
Throughout the four wards inspected it was observed that the external
windows were dirty and that there was limescale present on some taps.
6.2 Clutter
The main ward areas of Wards 3, 8 and 40 were cluttered with a mix of
patient equipment, cages, mattresses, mobile vital signs trolleys, linen
trolleys, notes and drugs trolleys. Inspectors noted that with the
exception of Ward 8 the ward areas became less cluttered as the
morning progressed.
The isolation room in Ward 3, as highlighted in the cleaning section
was cluttered, and there was no wardrobe for the patient’s personal
belongings. The linen store of Ward 8 was cluttered in appearance.
Equipment such as wheelchair feet and pressure relieving/support
wedges were stored on shelves. Three mattresses, patient handling
equipment and resuscitation training equipment were either stored on
the floor or were hanging from hooks in the linen store wall.
The equipment stores in Wards 31 and 40 and the treatment room of
Ward 40, were cluttered and untidy with excess equipment, the rooms
had a multi purpose function which needs to be clearly defined.
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