15 September 2010
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) today (Wednesday) said Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has made the necessary improvements to its staffing levels at the Peterborough Maternity Unit.
The regulator will now lift the remaining condition imposed on the trusts licence on 1 April 2010, when it introduced a tough new registration system for NHS trusts.
CQC required the trust to take action by 31 July to ensure that:
- It takes the appropriate steps to make sure that at all times, all women in labour receive care from a registered midwife. Specifically, the trust was required to ensure that its staffing ratios are no less than 1 midwife to every 35 births.
As part of the review, CQC checked compliance through a range of measures, including meetings with senior management and staff, reviewing information from the trust and analysis of findings from a survey undertaken by the Strategic Health Authority (SHA) on women’s perceptions of the care they have received in labour.
The CQC review noted that the trust had:
- Undertaken a major national recruitment drive and successfully recruited a large number of permanent midwifes and additional staff
- Permanent staffing levels that will be sufficient to ensure a ratio of 1 to 35 is maintained by 6 September 2010.
- In the interim, the trust has put in place a successful risk escalation process to deal with any exceptional circumstances where staffing ratios dip below the required level.
- Developed a reserve list to use against future vacancies and bank staff recruitment.
- Increased the numbers of maternity support workers and administration staff on duty have been increased to allow midwives to concentrate on clinical activities.
Interim results from the strategic Health Authority (SHA) survey in August 2010, showed that there was a high level of satisfaction among mothers. Aditionally 100% said that they received 1 to 1 care from a midwife in labour at the Peterborough Maternity Unit.
Frances Carey, CQC’s east region director said: “We are very pleased that the compliance condition has now been met and can therefore be removed from the trusts registration.
“From the evidence that we have received we are assured that woman in labour at the unit are supported by adequate numbers of appropriately trained staff. We acknowledge the significant effort made by the trust to recruit permanent staff and to put in place robust contingency measures in the interim.”
The Care Quality Commission will continue to monitor compliance with essential standards improvement through a new dynamic system of regulation, returning to the trust as necessary, to check compliance with the essential standards.
Ends
For further information please contact the CQC press office on 0207 448 9401 or out of hours on 07917 232 143.
Notes to editors
Read the reports
Read the reports from our checks on standards at Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.