Heatherwood And Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Urged To Improve Standards At Hospital

Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has been told to make urgent improvements at a hospital in Slough.

A report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) showed that concerns raised during an inspection at Wexham Park Hospital in May 2013 had not been acted upon sufficiently.

Having visited the healthcare facility again in October, the Trust has been advised to improve the standard of care given to patients and to assess the quality of nurses.

The CQC reported evidence of poor record keeping and a lack of cleanliness in certain parts of the hospital.

A lack of staff was also highlighted and there were examples where patients' privacy and dignity were not fully respected.

There were reports of employees being bullied and harassed by managers, while some workers felt they could not make suggestions or raise concerns about the day-to-day running of the hospital.

Adrian Hughes, regional director of CQC in the south, said the regulator had been monitoring Wexham Park Hospital for a number of months and had spoken to patients, relatives and staff about the standard of care being offered at the site.

"We found there was a clear emphasis on responding to national and local clinical targets but less emphasis on ensuring that overall patient experiences were positive," he remarked.
 
Mr Hughes added that the CQC would be making a return visit to the hospital on February 11th to see if any progress has been made.

Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust employs approximately 3,200 staff and provides hospital services to 450,000 people across a wide area that includes Bracknell, Maidenhead, Slough, south Buckinghamshire, Windsor and Ascot.

A statement from the Trust said the organisation was "disappointed" it had not made as many improvements as the CQC had originally recommended in May 2013.

"We are committed to making sustainable change and will continue to work hard to drive the improvements we all want to see," it read.

Expert Opinion

It is encouraging to see that these inspections are being carried out however the results in this case are very worrying. <br/> <br/>“It is vital that the public are made aware of this information and they are able to consider their options in terms of their own healthcare. It is essential that every effort is made to review what can be done to improve standards of patient care and safety. <br/> <br/>“We are contacted on a daily basis by patients and families across the country who want answers about poor care they have received and reassurances that lessons will be learned to prevent others suffering in similar circumstances. <br/> <br/>“We are pleased to see that the Trust has acknowledged the issues raised and are committed to taking the necessary steps to improve the facilities at the hospital for all patients and staff.” <br/> Lisa Jordan - Partner