State auditor warns about dangerous technical state of public hospitals

2010-02-03

Most public hospitals in Poland are in a bad technical condition, with worn-out, poorly-ventillated facilities, ill-adapted to the needs of the disabled and usually lacking adequate fire protection installations, according to a wide-ranging audit by the Supreme Chamber of Control (NIK).
The state auditor warned that in two thirds of the cases the weaknesses constituted a threat to patient safety and health, and that substantial investment outlays were needed to upgrade hospital facilities to a satisfactory level.
The audit, which covered 48 public hospitals in the voivodships of Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Lubelskie, Malopolskie, Mazowieckie, Podkarpackie, Pomorskie, Slaskie, Warminsko-Mazurskie and Wielkopolskie – showed that more than 80% had no appropriate fire protection installations. Half of the audited hospitals were not properly adapted to admit and serve disabled patients. Furthermore, two in three were flouting the obligation to carry out annual technical audits, and more than 40% performed such audits less than once in five years.