The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has told Royal Cornwall NHS Trust improvements are needed in its medical wards.
The inspection in September was prompted following concerns received about the safety and quality of the medical services.
As this was a focused inspection, it does not impact the overall rating for the service which remains requires improvement overall.
Catherine Campbell, CQC head of hospital inspection, said:
“Following our inspection of medical wards at Royal Cornwall NHS Trust, I am concerned that while the trust are providing excellent care for patients, the lack of staffing is impacting team morale, despite trust leaders’ plan to support recruitment which is currently in place.
“However, while people could access the service when they needed, it was worrying that they did not always receive the right care promptly due to pressures on bed capacity. We found there were significant numbers of patients unable to leave the hospital as they were waiting for onward care packages to be set up.
“We are aware the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board is doing everything it can to improve this situation – but needs full support from the Integrated Care Partnership in Cornwall.
“We will re-inspect to assess whether improvements are being made, and we won’t hesitate to take action if needed to protect patients.”
Findings from the inspection included:
- The service did not always have enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe
- Due to pressures on capacity and bed availability, some patients were cared for on a ward or in an escalation area which did not specialise in their medical condition, and some of these areas did not allow any privacy
- Due to the unrelenting pressures which had been ongoing for a long time and team shortages, staff morale was low. Some staff said they did not feel supported, respected or valued by leaders. Wards were busy and more often short-staffed, which the teams felt impacted patient care.