'My wife died because the NHS used cheap labour'

A man whose wife died after a drain was mistakenly left in her abdomen for 21 hours has condemned the increased use of physician associates (PAs) within the National Health Service. Susan Pollitt's inquest concluded her death at Royal Oldham Hospital in July 2023 had been caused by an "unnecessary medical procedure contributed to by neglect". Roy Pollitt did not know his 77-year-old wife was being treated by a PA - who are only required to have two years' medical training - and believes "she would have lived if the NHS had not used cheap labour".

The coroner who examined Mrs Pollitt's death highlighted the lack of a national framework covering PAs' training, supervision and competency assessment. Associates were introduced in the NHS 21 years ago with the expectation they would support doctors by delivering basic care. Over the past two years the number of associates has more than doubled to 3,000.

According to the NHS Long Term Plan, there will be 12,000 physician and anaesthetic associates by 2036. Fears have been expressed, however, that some have been acting beyond their original remit. BBC News has seen evidence that in the month of Mrs Pollitt’s death, the NHS trust which oversees Royal Oldham used PAs to cover nearly 20% of doctor shifts in elderly care.

Several organisations, including the British Medical Association (BMA), have voiced concerns about the blurring of professional lines between doctors and associates across NHS trusts and primary care. Anaesthetists U.