Chesterfield Royal Hospital rated 'good' after inspection

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) carried out an inspection in November 2018.

The hospital was rated ‘good’ overall, the same as its last inspection in July 2016.

The Royal’s end of life care and children’s mental health care services were rated ‘outstanding’.

Lynn Andrews, director of nursing and patient care at the Royal, said: “I’m so proud of our staff and how hard they work to provide the best possible care and services to our patients. Our ‘good’ rating recognises their dedication and to have two elements of care singled out for being ‘outstanding’ is a delight. I hope every member of staff feels just as proud of our achievement and that they appreciate how each of them has contributed to our success.”

The CQC basis its overall rating on whether services are safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.

The end of life care was described as provided with compassion, kindness and support.

The child and adolescent mental health service was highlighted for outstanding engagement with the young people in its care.

When the Royal was inspected in 2016 it was rated ‘good’ overall, but had 12 sections that ‘required improvement’, compared to three this time. The Royal has pledged to address them quickly as they work towards achieving an ‘outstanding’ rating next time.

The report sets out two areas the Royal must do - tightening up processes for assessing patients’ capacity to make decisions - and making sure staff training in the Mental Capacity Act is robust.

There are also around 20 actions the CQC recommend the hospital takes to make services even better. They range from monitoring staff training compliance and improving storage for medical records, through to keeping corridors free from clutter and reducing waiting times for some young peoples’ assessments – in autism spectrum, attention hyperactivity disorder and cognitive behavioural therapy.

Ms Andrews added: “We must celebrate all the positives staff have achieved here, nevertheless it’s equally important to focus on ‘what’s next?’ in relation to improvement.

“We are all committed to improving the care and services we provide and this report gives us even more of an incentive, along with some tips and ideas about how to get there. As we continue on our journey to achieve an outstanding rating for all our hospital services, I would like to thank all of our staff for their continued determination and support.”