The Care Quality Commission (CQC), has found improvements in children and young people’s services at Alexandra Hospital following an inspection in October.
CQC carried out an unannounced inspection of children and young people’s services at Alexandra Hospital, which is run by Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust.
The improvements in services for children and young people mean the overall rating has improved from requires improvement to good. How safe, effective and well-led the service is has improved from requires improvement to good. How responsive the service is remains rated as requires improvement. Inspectors didn’t look at how caring it was as part of this inspection so this remains rated as good from its previous inspection.
Craig Howarth, CQC deputy director of operations in the midlands, said:
“We were pleased with the improvements that the team at Alexandra Hospital had made to children and young’s people’s services. It was clear that staff had put in significant work to improve areas we identified at our previous inspection. We also saw leaders were much more effective, and our experience tells us that good leadership, means better care, which is what we saw here.
“People were happy with the care they received. Staff provided children, young people and their families with high quality care and all the information they needed, which added to their positive experience.
“People also told us about their positive experiences of the trust’s outpatient services. Staff implemented a one stop outpatient appointment where they took blood samples during the same visit as the appointment. This approach helped children and young people miss less time in school and allowed their parents or carers to avoid taking additional time off work.
“Leaders were also committed to improving young people’s experience of care and treatment. They also created a positive and supportive culture for staff which had raised the quality of care being provided. For example, both leaders and staff made sure that care and treatment was suitable and appropriate for the people in their care, protecting them from harm. Staff explained clearly what they would do before carrying out care, which included taking blood samples. This helped young people feel comfortable and less nervous.
“Staff at Alexandra Hospital should be proud of the findings of our report and the improvements they have made. We look forward to visiting again in future to see their continued progress as they build on these positive findings.”
Inspectors found:
- Staff recognised the signs of people who were at risk of experiencing harm and worked closely with partner organisations to protect them.
- Young people provided feedback when they were involved in incidents. Staff learned from these experiences, preventing them from happening again and improving services.
- Staff kept the environment clean and safe and equipment well-maintained. People felt comfortable and safe, and children enjoyed using the play equipment while waiting.
- Staff reviewed cases and made sure the people in most urgent need were seen quickly.
- The service had introduced a dedicated team that improved people’s experiences of transitioning from children to adult services.
- Staff supported people to make informed decisions about their care and treatment.
- Staff listened to people’s individual needs and made appropriate adjustments to help them access the service.
However:
- The service didn’t have a funded phlebotomy service for children which meant people faced a wait of three or more months for a blood test. Leaders planned to develop a dedicated phlebotomy service.
The report will be published on CQC’s website in the coming days.
