PATIENTS at Musgrove Park Hospital are less likely to die than at most other hospitals in the country, according to a survey.

The death rate at Musgrove, in Taunton, is 16% below the national average, the Dr Foster Intelligence statistics show.

For every 100 expected deaths for a hospital the size of Musgrove, only 84 patients die.

A trust spokesman said the figures, for the period February, 2011, to January this year, showed Musgrove was one of the best performing trusts nationally.

The survey also concluded that there is no difference in the hospital’s mortality rate between weekdays and weekends.

Musgrove medical director Dr Colin Close said: “People can be reassured that at Musgrove they’ll have some of the safest levels of care in the country, and that care will be the same whether they’re admitted on a Monday, Thursday, Sunday or a Bank Holiday.

“We’ve worked very hard to ensure that our mortality rates are no different at weekends and on weekdays because every patient should expect to have the same standard of care regardless of when they’re admitted to hospital.

“We’ve employed extra doctors in all acute areas, and now have four medical consultants – a gastroenterologist, a cardiologist and two general physicians – working at weekends with a consultant on our medical admissions unit from 8am until 10pm every day of the week.

“In addition, all emergency surgery is led by consultant surgeons and anaesthetists, day and night.”