The Thermostatic Mixing Valve Manufacturers’ Association (TMVA) has successfully secured the inclusion of “Severe Scalding of Patients” in the expanded list of “Never events” recently published by the Department of Health.
The list is prefaced by the wording: “The expanded never events list is, in the view of the Department of Health, a reasonable list of events that are unacceptable and eminently preventable in the NHS.” “Never event” 24, “Severe Scalding of Patients”, references the relevant guidance documents to follow to ensure such an event never happens, and the TMVA points out that these present thermostatic mixing valves as the key temperature controlling device to be installed to meet the relevant safety requirements.
