Trust’s Care Quality Commission reports published

Reports into services provided by York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust have been published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The CQC visited the Trust as part of its planned inspection programme in June, focusing on Scarborough and Bridlington hospitals.  A well led review and a use of resources assessment were also completed.

Taking account of all of these elements, the overall rating of the Trust remains as ‘Requires Improvement’.

The report highlights many positive observations of the services the Trust is providing, with Scarborough Hospital’s maternity services and Bridlington Hospital achieving a rating of ‘Good’ overall, demonstrating improvement since the last inspection.

York Hospital and the Trust’s community services were not re-inspected and retain their rating of ‘Good’.

The inspection team raised a number of concerns about safety and these are reflected in the overall safety rating for Scarborough Hospital.  These concerns relate in the main to nursing and medical staffing levels and the Trust’s ability to meet key access targets.

Mr James Taylor, Medical Director, said: “Our recruitment challenges are well documented and we recognise the CQC’s concerns regarding staffing. 

Following feedback from the CQC we responded with a number of immediate actions including increasing the number of doctors on shift overnight.

“Our medical recruitment position has improved, and the vacancy rate has halved since the summer of 2018.

“It is also reassuring to see the CQC describe how patients are monitored and risk assessed to ensure they are kept safe despite the pressure facing the emergency department at times.”

Heather McNair, Chief Nurse, said: “In response to the CQC’s observations we have reviewed nurse staffing levels on key medical wards, and have increased the number of nurses in these areas in line with the CQC’s recommendations.

“We have recruited more nurses this year than last year, with 60 new nurses joining us in the coming months.

“We continue to have agency staff supporting our wards - however the report acknowledges that staffing levels and skill mix are regularly reviewed, and that bank and agency staff are given a full induction when they arrive on site.”

Simon Morritt, Chief Executive, said: “The efforts of staff shine through in this report, and every area without exception is rated as ‘Good’ for caring.  It is pleasing to see that Scarborough’s maternity services, and Bridlington Hospital overall, have seen improvements since the last inspection and are now rated as good.

“Whilst there is much for staff to be proud of in this report, the CQC has also identified a number of areas for improvement.  The areas highlighted by the CQC mirror our own priorities, and we are working hard to address them, both in the immediate and longer term.

“It is now widely acknowledged that small, rural hospitals have their own unique challenges, and we are actively working as part of a national network to help develop solutions for this.

“Our recruitment picture is improving, and we have longer-term plans for the site which include a £40million investment in Scarborough’s emergency department to help transform how we assess and treat emergency patients.”

To read the full report visit: www.cqc.org.uk/provider/RCB

16 October 2019