People admitted to English hospitals in an emergency on the first Wednesday in August have, on average, a 6% higher mortality rate than people admitted on the previous Wednesday.
The data has raised concerns as newly qualified junior doctors start their new positions in NHS hospitals in England on the first Wednesday in August. The authors of the study, from the Dr Foster Unit and the Department of Acute Medicine at Imperial College London, suggested that the excess mortality rates may be linked to this influx of newly qualified doctors but more research is needed before they can draw any firm conclusions. The study looked at data for almost 300,000 patients admitted to hospitals in 175 NHS Trusts between 2000 and 2008. Dr Paul Aylin, the senior author of the study from the Dr Foster Unit at Imperial College London, said: “Our study does not mean that people should avoid going into hospital that week. This is a relatively small difference in mortality rates, and the numbers of excess deaths are very low. It’s too early to say what might be causing it. It might simply be the result of differences between the patients who were admitted.”
