ANOTHER finding of the report identifies that at East Lancashire Hospitals Trust, ‘certain clinical concerns raised by staff have not been addressed, including known high mortality at the weekends’.

Last month it was reported recently published figures showed the death rate at the trust’s hospitals were higher at the weekends.

Bosses at the Royal Blackburn and Burnley General Hospitals insisted there was ‘robust weekend staffing’, with Rineke Schram, medical director at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, saying: “Consultants are supported by experienced doctors, who provide cover in shifts 24/7.

“Furthermore, the planned ratio and skill mix of nursing and midwifery staff to care for patients is also 24 hours, 7 days per week.”

But the figures prompted fresh concerns about patient care with campaigners saying it was the same old story about staffing and something that needs addressing across the UK.

The figures came in the wake of a national report, published in the British Medical Journal in May, which said patients who undergo planned surgery on a Friday are 44 per cent more likely to die than those who have a procedure on a Monday.

Statistics for East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust indicated there were 14 per cent more deaths than expected during weekends in 2012, with the ratio increasing from 102 during the week to 114 at weekends. The spike was attributed to emergency admissions, which are mainly dealt with at the Royal Blackburn.