Sanctions for hospital where sick washed from cardboard bowls The inspectors also raised concerns about an adjacent theatre area which did not have restricted access. When inspectors visited the hospital earlier this month they discovered that between July and August "a number" of patients had been on the unit for more than 24 hours and in some cases for more than four days. Malcolm Bower-Brown, deputy director of CQC in the north, said: "The failings we witnessed on this unit at Pinderfields Hospital were completely unacceptable. CQC took swift action following our inspection to ensure the safety and wellbeing of patients. The decision to place an urgent condition on a provider's registration is not one we take lightly. However, when we find poor practice, as we did in this case, we will take immediate action to ensure patients are not at risk. We are heartened by the Trust's rapid and positive response to our action and they are working closely in partnership with other agencies to address the issues of concern. However we will continue to monitor the position closely and, if necessary, will not hesitate to take further action to ensure patients receive the service they are entitled to expect. Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust said that between mid July and the end of August, 30 patients stayed in the day ward for more than 23 hours. It said it has already taken action to remedy the CQC's concerns. Patients on the ward now have access to the same food as any other ward in the hospital, a spokesman said. Bedside lockers and lights have been installed and workers now need a swipe card to access the theatre. A spokesman from the hospital said that it also plans to make improvements to the washing facilities. Stephen Eames, interim chief executive of the trust, said: "We would like to apologise to any patient whose experience on the day surgical unit may have fallen below the high standards we would expect. To our knowledge no patients have come to harm as a result of an inpatient stay on this unit. We do accept that the facilities and environment on this unit were not entirely suitable for inpatients and we are in the process of making significant improvements so it can be used for short stays. The concerns raised by the CQC relate to the facilities and physical environment of the unit for patients spending more than 23 hours there. They do not relate to the levels of staffing on the unit or the quality of care given by our staff which patients told the CQC was very good. We have not been routinely using the day surgical unit for inpatient stays over 23 hours. This happens as part of an escalation policy which enables us to find extra capacity in the hospital for low risk inpatients in times of high demand. This escalation policy is in place because there is a serious knock-on effect of not managing demand for beds properly. The last thing we want is patients waiting on trolleys in accident and emergency or in ambulances and this is what the escalation policy seeks to avoid.