How did they get it so wrong?

Less than a week ago, the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust claimed that single-sex wards existed in "almost every area" of its hospitals, in line with Government guidelines on privacy for patients.

Now comes an embarrassing climbdown -- after Oxford Mail readers related their experiences, the trust has admitted that all 99 wards at our four major hospitals are unisex.

The trust press office has apologised for the mixup and should be given some credit for doing so when challenged.

But the admission that men and women share all wards shows that the trust has failed totally to meet Government targets in this respect.

If it is a choice between leaving a woman patient in an uncomfortable assessment area or admitting her to a ward or bay full of men, the latter will be its preferred option.

We have some sympathy with that argument. Patient care should always be the overriding criterion. But privacy and dignity are also important factors.

Many patients still feel uneasy at having to share with strangers of the opposite sex.

The trust is clearly not giving their feelings as much attention as it should.