Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals have been named as performing “better than most trusts” in the Care Quality Commission’s 2020 Adult Inpatient Survey.
The annual survey captures feedback from patients who have stayed in hospital for at least one night. Patients are asked about their experience from pre-admission right through to their discharge. This year, Royal Brompton and Harefield received nearly 800 responses from patients who stayed at one of the hospitals between November 2020; the majority of which were overwhelmingly positive.
The hospitals performed better than most other trusts in 19 out of 45 questions asked across eight areas and performed to the same standard as other trusts in 25 questions. The areas covered were: admission, the ward, doctors, nurses, care and treatment, operations and procedures, discharge, and respect and dignity. The professionalism and caring attitude of staff was highly valued. Key results include:
- 100% of patients felt staff helped control their pain
- 100% of patients felt they were treated with respect and dignity
- 100% of patients had confidence and trust in their doctors, and 99% had confidence in the nurses looking after them
- 100% said the room or ward was very or fairly clean
- 99% of staff helped when patients needed attention
- 98% of nurses and 97% of doctors answered questions clearly and included patients in conversations
Overall, 94% rated their experience as 7/10 or higher.
Some of the excellent feedback received from patients included:
“All staff are doing their very best under extreme conditions and I hope they are all safe, I admire them all. Just want to say a very big thank you.”
“Wonderful hospital with dedicated staff. Never been in a hospital where they just get it so right.”
“The doctors and all my team were fantastic at looking after me and every aspect of my condition.”
Dr Richard Grocott-Mason, Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals’ managing director, commented on the survey results: “We are proud of our strong record on patient care, and this latest patient survey reinforces that at the heart of our organisation is the belief that every patient deserves the best possible care. I hope my colleagues will see these results and know their hard work is appreciated by patients.”
Learning from patient feedback
Despite performing highly, the hospitals have identified several areas in which they can improve. Some of these key areas are:
- Food
- Shared facilities – patients’ comments suggest areas are tired and in need a refurbishment
- Sleep and noise at night – 40% of patients said they were affected
- Patient involvement and feedback – only 14% felt they were asked to give their views
Teams across the sites with responsibilities in these areas will be asked to share their thoughts on how improvements can be made.
Karen Taylor, arts and patient and public engagement lead, said: “Our teams should be very proud of feedback we have received from patients in this survey. These results are a clear indication of the world class care offered at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals.
“We will continue to strive for excellence and will look into ways we can improve patient care and experience across both hospitals.”
Visit the CQC website to read the full report. The 2020 Adult Inpatient Survey was conducted when Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals were an NHS Foundation Trust. The hospitals have since merged with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.