The NHS has today announced the 143 hospital sites that will test and roll out Martha’s Rule in its first year and it will include six hospitals in Greater Manchester
The scheme is named after Martha Mills, who died from sepsis aged 13 in 2021, having been treated at King’s College Hospital, London, due to a failure to escalate her to intensive care and after her family’s concerns about her deteriorating condition were not responded to.
The six hospitals are Royal Bolton Hospital; Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital; Tameside General Hospital; The Christie; the Royal Oldham Hospital and the Royal Albert Edward Infirmary in Wigan.
Martha’s Rule is to be made up of three components to ensure concerns about deterioration can be swiftly responded to.
Firstly, an escalation process will be available 24/7 at all the 143 sites, advertised throughout the hospitals on posters and leaflets, enabling patients and families to contact a critical care outreach team that can swiftly assess a case and escalate care if necessary. Secondly, NHS staff will also have access to this same process if they have concerns about a patient’s condition.
Finally, alongside this, clinicians at participating hospitals will also formally record daily insights and information about a patient’s health directly from their families, ensuring any concerning changes in behaviour or condition noticed by the people who know the patient best are considered by staff.
Extensive campaigning by Martha’s parents, Merope and Paul, supported by the cross-party think tank Demos, saw widespread support for a single system that allows patients or their families to trigger an urgent clinical review from a different team in the hospital if the patient’s condition is rapidly worsening and they feel they are not getting the care they need.
Merope Mills and Paul Laity, Martha’s parents, said: “We are pleased that the roll-out of Martha’s Rule is off to a flying start and that the need for it has been so widely recognised.
“It will save lives and encourage better, more open, communication on hospital wards, so that patients feel they are listened to, and partners in their healthcare.”
Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, said: “Rolling out Martha’s Rule to over 143 NHS sites in this first phase will represent one of the most important changes to patient care in recent years, and we are pleased to have seen such interest from hospitals right across the country, all thanks to the moving and dedicated campaigning by Martha’ parents, Merope and Paul.
“That is why today is such an important milestone, with the NHS outlining the 143 sites where this major patient safety initiative will be rolled out later this year, allowing staff, patients and families to immediately raise concerns and bring about an escalation in care in an easily recognisable and fast way.
“The inclusion of daily insights from families about their loved ones’ condition within patient records is also a really significant step and will help staff identify changes and deterioration using insights from those who know the patient best. While thankfully the need for escalation of care will hopefully only be needed in a limited number of cases, this three-step safety net has the opportunity to truly transform patient care and safety.”
