Use of mixed-sex wards rises in 2016

The number of patients being made to stay in mixed-sex wards has risen considerably in the last year, according to new data from NHS England.

Official figures show that 7,163 patients were put in wards accommodating both genders   in 2016, up from 4,248 in 2015. This represented a year-on-year increase of nearly 70 percent, indicating that recent progress on reducing the number is being reversed.

In April 2011, fines of 250 pounds were introduced for hospitals placing patients on a mixed-sex ward. This led to a considerable fall in numbers, with the 11,802 breaches from December 2010 dropping to only 907 in December 2011 and 314 in December 2012.

In 2014 there was a total of 2,585 patients placed on mixed-sex wards, but this figure has increased by 177 percent since then.

The Patients Association has reacted to the news with disappointment, saying single-sex wards are vital to helping preserve patient dignity.

Patients Association chief executive Katherine Murphy said: "It is really concerning that over the past year there has been a sharp increase in the number of patients being placed on mixed-sex wards, as a result of mounting hospital pressures."

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