The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published a report following an unannounced inspection of surgery services at Northampton General Hospital, run by Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust, in March.
Inspectors visited the head and neck ward in the surgery department to check people were receiving appropriate care, as well as to check equipment and processes were in place to reduce the risk of people falling. This was due to concerns CQC had received about the service.
During this inspection, CQC found the concerns were unsubstantiated and the service had suitable safeguards in place to reduce the risk of people falling. However, there were some concerns, including the ward layout.
As inspectors only looked at some areas of safe, effective and well-led, surgery has not been re-rated and remains rated good overall and for being safe, effective and well-led. Caring and responsive also remain rated as good.
The overall rating for Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust remains requires improvement.
Inspectors found:
- People felt safe on the ward and staff responded promptly to their needs.
- Each bed had a call bell within reach of the person, and they were responded to quickly.
- Sensor mats were in place to alert staff when someone who was at risk of falls attempted to stand up.
- Staff had received training on how to prevent people from falling, and learning from incidents was shared with staff to reduce the risk of similar incidents from happening again.
- Staff knew what incidents to report, and reported them clearly and in line with trust policy.
However:
- The ward layout made it challenging for staff to care for people who were confused or at risk of falling. Staff tried to maintain a clutter free environment around the immediate bedside but found this more challenging on the wider ward due to the environmental constraints.
The report will be published on CQC’s website in the next few days.