Hospital horrors as patients died and others deteriorated during sweltering 44C heatwave

Patients died — and nurses witnessed maggots in wounds — as temperatures hit 44C highs over the summer, hospital staff claim.

Nurses reported seeing patients die and others deteriorate in what they have described as "suffocating atmospheres" due to the sweltering heat on NHS wards, a Royal College of Nursing (RCN) survey found. The concerning finds also include accounts of nurses witnessing cancer patients dripping with sweat during chemotherapy sessions with one claiming to have seen maggots in wounds.

Record-breaking heat meant patients came to harm, according to the RCN . It has since called for more Government investment so hospitals can better cope in warm weather. The survey of 2,471 nursing staff during the summer heatwaves found high temperatures affected care, with examples of poorer outcomes for patients.

One children's ward in Yorkshire reached a scorching 44C, according to one nurse, while another in the North West of England called the situation was "horrendous" with patients "suffering more from the actual heat than the actual reason they are in hospital." The damning claims come after nurses ended up fainting in swelteringly hot hospital wards which were condemned as "not fit for humans."

Campaigners and unions have slammed that there are no maximum temperature workplace temperatures, even though there is a minimum standard. It comes after Britain was hit by five heatwaves during a record-breaking summer which made work in hospitals more challenging.

Another nurse said patients fainted, and other patients suffered dehydration, particularly older people. One common theme in the survey was the effect on people with heart failure and respiratory conditions, who seemed to fare worse because of the heat.

A nurse in Wales said: "We had two frail patients for whom the extreme heat directly impacted their deaths. Whilst it was not the only cause, if you are in respiratory failure, the heat is a death sentence."

A palliative care nurse working in a hospital in the South West of England said: "We had a palliative patient with chronic ulcers on the ward. In the hospital's care, during the last heatwave, the wounds festered enough that they attracted flies and were found to have maggots. Some of his and his relatives' last memories will be knowing of and, in his case feeling, maggots in his wounds."

A nurse treating cancer patients in London said: "I've seen patients sweating and dripping due to the heat during chemotherapy. There is no air conditioning running in the unit. During one particularly hot period, patients were visibly sweating throughout their treatment. This feels like a safety concern, not just a comfort issue."

Paramedics also spoke of "unbearable" shifts and crews being sent out in ambulances in stifling heat with faulty or no air conditioning. Multiple nurses also reported mental health patients becoming more challenging, leading to further assaults on staff.

Some 74 per cent of those polled said they had little or no confidence that the Government was taking sufficient action to reduce the impact of climate change on the NHS and social care.