The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has told The Hillingdon Hospital NHS Foundation Trust it must make immediate improvements to its infection control practices in order to protect the safety of patients and staff.
CQC has used its urgent enforcement powers by placing conditions on the trust’s registration to ensure standards of safety, following an inspection which looked at how the trust was dealing with COVID-19. The inspection took place on 4 and 5 August 2020 and was carried out in response to concerns raised when a number of staff contracted COVID-19.
CQC has told the trust it must have an effective system to manage any risks relating to the health and safety of people using the service and staff delivering care. The conditions require the trust to take the following action:
- The trust must ensure staff and patients observe social distancing throughout the hospital. There must be clear signage to different zones in the hospital. It must ensure Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is placed in areas that are easily accessible and that staff wear PPE before going into high risk areas.
- Patient care plans must consider COVID-19 and reflect this where necessary to ensure care is planned and documented appropriately. The trust must also provide CQC with details of any system put in place to ensure staff are tested for COVID-19 and that they are fit to work. CQC must see a copy of test results that have been repeated and details of any action put in place in the event that staff fail any retest.
- The trust must ensure risk assessments are carried out throughout the hospital including the wards, education centre, the lecture theatre and syndicate rooms, corridors and main entrance to the hospital; so that risks related to the spread of COVID-19 are reduced. A copy of those risk assessments must be provided to CQC. In the event that the trust introduces any policies, procedures or protocols as a result of the risk assessments, the registered provider must ensure staff are informed.
- The trust must provide CQC with a copy of its written infection prevention and control action plan for the hospital, covering all areas, including dates for completion of each action. It must report to CQC on a weekly basis, setting out any progress in relation its action plan.
- The trust must put in place an effective system to ensure that there is oversight over the booking of the education centre.
Dr Nigel Acheson, CQC’s Deputy Chief Inspector of Hospitals, said:
“People using services at The Hillingdon Hospital NHS Foundation Trust are entitled to services that are safe, effective, caring and responsive. We found a number of concerns relating to infection control and this is why we have taken action to ensure the safety of patients, staff and visitors.
“We have imposed urgent conditions upon the trust’s registration and expect The Hillingdon Hospital NHS Foundation Trust to focus on making the required improvements as a matter of priority. We will return to inspect and ensure that action has been taken and that improvements have been made and are being sustained.”
CQC will publish a full report of its findings from the August inspection, that resulted in conditions being placed on the trust’s registration, in due course.
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