Dead body visible from public footpath after staff at NHS' Worthing Hospital propped open fire door

Dead body visible from public footpath after staff at NHS' Worthing Hospital propped open fire door Human Tissue Authority (HTA) inspectors who visited NHS' Worthing Hospital in West Sussex saw a body being prepared for release from a publicly accessible area A dead body in a hospital mortuary was visible from a public footpath after staff left a fire exit propped open during hot weather, inspectors have found. Human Tissue Authority (HTA) inspectors made the disturbing discovery during an inspection of Worthing Hospital in West Sussex on July 7 and 8, amid a heatwave. They found the mortuary office fire exit was "frequently opened" during periods of hot weather, providing what they described as unrestricted access to the body store. Inspectors also warned that when the doors were propped open, there was a direct line of sight from a publicly accessible footpath into the mortuary. Although the path at the rear of the hospital was not frequently used, inspectors said they were able to see a body being prepared for release while standing in the public area. The HTA report said: “Although the footpath is located at the rear of the hospital and is not frequently used, during the inspection the inspection team was able to observe a body being prepared for release from this publicly accessible area.” The findings come amid growing warnings that the NHS must prepare for increasing pressures during the summer months, as well as winter. Many NHS buildings are understood to be poorly equipped to cope with prolonged periods of hot weather, with some lacking adequate air conditioning. Inspectors also found that CCTV covering the mortuary office fire exit was “not operational”, despite cameras being installed at the hospital. The security concerns are particularly serious in the wake of the David Fuller scandal, which saw the former hospital electrician abuse at least 100 dead women and girls in mortuaries across hospitals in the Southeast of England. Following the scandal, NHS trusts were told to ensure access points to mortuaries and body stores were protected by swipe-card security and that effective CCTV was in place to monitor access to and from the areas. During the inspection of Worthing Hospital and satellite sites at St Richard’s Hospital in Chichester and Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton, HTA officials identified 10 major and six minor breaches of its standards. All three sites are run by University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust. A trust spokesperson told the Health Service Journal, which first reported the HTA findings, that the inspection had “identified areas where our standards needed to improve”. They added that most of the issues had since been fully addressed. The trust has been approached for further comment.