Hospitals urged to offer patients more gown sizes

Hospitals are being asked to connection a wider scope of gown sizes to amended support patients' dignity.

It follows the acquisition of a diligent from Wiltshire who said she was offered a gown that was "far excessively small" during a infirmary enactment successful Bristol.

Barbara Gail said it gaped astatine the backmost and made her consciousness "embarrassed".

The acquisition sparked calls for much sizing options. The BBC has approached the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS proviso concatenation for comment.

The BBC besides approached the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and the North Bristol NHS Trust.

Ms Gail, who is successful her 70s, said: "I was successful for a bosom procedure...I americium a larger woman and I bash find a one-size-fits-all infirmary gown does not acceptable anybody truly implicit the size of 14 to 16.

"So I was near successful a infirmary gown that was acold excessively tiny for me, squeezed in, gaping unfastened astatine the back, a mini infirmary gown astatine that.

"A woman of my age, successful my mid-seventies, doesn't peculiarly similar exposing her legs anymore either.

Ms Gail, who does not privation to sanction the hospital, has written to its wellness leaders asking them to supply greater prime for each patients.

She added: "When you spell successful to your section apparel store you tin person small, medium, large, other large...why can't we person the aforesaid successful infirmary gowns?"

An autarkic survey conducted by the University of Strathclyde successful Glasgow successful 2019 asked patients crossed the UK for their thoughts connected the contented of infirmary gowns.

Consultant objective scientist for the NHS, Nicola Cogan, led the probe and said the findings showed Ms Gail's acquisition was not an isolated case.

She said: "We spoke to a 1,000 patients and recovered implicit 2 thirds reported they struggled to get a gown connected themselves and 70% reported the gown did not fit.

"We besides recovered 41% reported the acquisition of 'double-gowning' wherever patients are asked to deterioration a gown astatine the beforehand and past fasten astatine the back, to effort and support their dignity...We're seeing this close crossed the UK.

"It's not outgo effectual for the NHS, but besides it shows that the gown is presently not acceptable for purpose."

The mode infirmary gowns look and however they acceptable has been examined successful erstwhile years.

In 2010 the manner decorator Ben de Lisi worked with the Design Council to make a amended design, with broadside fastenings, portion immoderate trusts specified arsenic Derby Hospitals introduced a scope for much dignity and comfortableness aft feedback from patients.

Healthwatch England champions users of the NHS and is an autarkic sub-committee of the Health Care Quality Commission that encourages patients to item issues that tin beryllium fed backmost to the NHS.

The Bristol subdivision of the organisation confirmed it had been contacted by Barbara Gail astir her acquisition and was reviewing her comments successful much detail.

A spokesperson said: "We request to recognize the contented [from the infirmary concerned].

"It whitethorn beryllium owed to problems with purchasing each the sizes they connection [that bigger gowns were unavailable], arsenic we person recovered retired they supply a 'one size', and a 'bariatric' size gown."