Check all patients for neglect, says minister He has agreed to trial a scheme in which the condition of every patient is recorded when they enter hospital, called a 'Present on Admission' (POA) flag. Figures suggest that tens of thousands of patients are admitted to hospital every year with health problems that originated elsewhere, such as care homes. Experts believe that up to a third of hospital patients with bed sores had them before coming in. In January campaigners wrote to health ministers, saying that a checking system that could be introduced quickly was needed. There is a long-term solution to the problem in development, but this could take years to implement. They argued their system would act as an "early warning" of "poor quality care" in homes. Roger Taylor, of Dr Foster Intelligence, which compiles annual figures ranking NHS hospitals, said the lack of recorded admissions checks meant "nobody takes responsibility for these problems." Now Mr Burns has written to Mr Taylor saying he thought the POA idea was "an acceptable interim solution." Ten to 12 health trusts could pilot it in the autumn, he said, and if it was found to work it could become "mandatory." Mr Burns commented: "We strongly support any developments that will help patients receive a better quality of care and treatment in hospital. We are working with hospitals to try and establish how we could test the Present on Admission flag.