STAFF working in the operating theatres at an Oxford hospital have been given plastic whistles to call for help in an emergency.

Hospital bosses last night admitted there is no unified emergency call system in operation at the John Radcliffe Hospital and they had handed nurses the "bog-standard" whistles "worth a few pence".

Hospital staff contacted the Oxford Mail claiming the new system was confusing and putting patients at risk.

Until recently, nursing staff working on general surgery theatres needing a porter to grab emergency supplies and equipment would use the bedside call bell.

A light was activated in the porters’ waiting area, with three flashes indicating there was an emergency.

But the porters have been moved to the corridors in a bid to make them more “visible and accessible”, meaning they can’t see the lights, so staff are using whistles to summon them.

The John Radcliffe Hospital said there were either phones, intercoms or two-way radios available in different theatres but admitted there was no single uniform option apart from the whistles across all the theatres.

A hospital source said: “The old way wasn’t ideal, but we had worked out a system which meant we didn’t have to leave our patients alone if we needed help.

“For as long as any of us can remember there hasn’t been a proper emergency system.

“A lot of staff feel these whistles are an insult.

“It’s all well the porters being out in the corridor, but we still have to leave the patient to get them. Our biggest fear is that someone will leave the room to go and get help, and the patient will die waiting.”

Wards on the new West Wing and Children’s Hospital have a single, unified call system.

The Oxford University Hospitals NHS trust (OUH) which runs the John Radcliffe, said meetings had been held last week to address the problem and it was working to install a £14,000 bell system as soon as possible.

Amanda Middleton, general manager of critical care, theatres, diagnostics and pharmacy, said: “The older operating theatres at the John Radcliffe Hospital have never had an integrated call bell system but that is about to change.

“We are installing a new system as soon as we can action the work.

“Meetings have been held to move this forward.

“The system has changed in recent weeks to improve the visibility and accessibility of the porters who support the operating theatre and recovery room staff in the John Radcliffe Hospital.

“Operating theatre staff do still have a number of options available for summoning support from porters and one of these is the use of whistles.

“The whistles have been added to the range of options so that staff have a way of raising support quickly that is simple and effective and not reliant on technology.”

The source said the money needed to be spent as soon as possible.

They added: “At the end of the day, all anyone wants to do is the best for the patients.

“We want a proper system before something serious happens.”

The source was also worried that the JR was tipped to become a centre of excellent for strokes and major trauma, but the current emergency system was not up to standard to support that plan.