Mixed-sex accommodation has no place in 21st century health care

U.K. – The Royal College of Nursing says that mixed sex accommodation with shared bathrooms has no place in 21st century health care. The comments come as the coalition government confirms its intention to end most mixed-sex hospital accommodation in England.

RCN Executive Director of Nursing and Service Delivery Janet Davies says:

“The RCN has been calling for the abolition of mixed sex wards to protect patients’ dignity for many years and we therefore welcome the fact this is still on the agenda.

“We are pleased that there remains a concerted effort to eliminate this but it is important to realise that the many hospital trusts are no longer providing mixed sex accommodation. However, while significant progress has been made in this area already there is still a way to go.”

The RCN recognises that the challenge now is likely to be mainly in older hospitals where wards were built for a different era of health care. Ms Davies adds:

“It is significantly more difficult to upgrade the existing estate while providing flexibility of bed usage. In addition, many of these hospitals can face financial challenges. As they struggle to make huge efficiency savings we would be concerned if they were to suffer additional financial penalties – which in turn could lead to them looking for short-term financial savings impacting on patient care.”


Source: Royal College of Nursing