The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has welcomed significant
improvements in the forensic inpatient or secure wards at
Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust following an
inspection in February.
Inspectors carried out an unannounced focused inspection to
look at the specific issues raised at a previous inspection in
February 2021, when the service was rated as inadequate overall
and was issued with warning notices. At this inspection all
concerns had either been addressed or in progress.
Following this inspection, the overall rating for forensic
inpatient or secure wards has improved from inadequate to
good. The rating for being responsive has moved from
requires improvement to good and the rating for being well-led
has improved from inadequate to good, while safe has improved
from inadequate to requires improvement, effective and caring
remain as good.
The rating for Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
remains rated as requires improvement overall.
Craig Howarth, CQC’s head of hospital inspections,
said:
“The leaders in the forensic inpatients or secure wards at
Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust have worked hard
to improve the care and treatment to patients in their care. It
is abundantly clear the leadership team has taken our feedback on
board and worked hard to address our concerns and have met the
requirements of the warning notices we issued following the last
inspection.
“Previously CQC did have a number of concerns, especially with
risks to patient safety, staff engagement and the leadership of
the service. However, the new management team have made
significant improvements and we feel assured that these have been
thoroughly embedded. Systems are now in place to ensure that
staff feel motivated to develop their skills and improve the care
they deliver. Staff were also very keen to tell us that leaders
and managers had supported them at difficult times and that they
felt proud about working at the trust.
“The service has come a long way and staff and the leadership
team deserve to be congratulated for the hard work they have put
in to turn the service around. We will return in due course to
see what further improvements have taken place.”
Inspectors found the following:
- Staff knew about any potential ligature anchor points and
managed any risks to keep patients safe. This included having
easy access to a ward ligature hot spot map and documents
relating to patients’ access arrangements.
- Patients and carers said they felt staff respected them and
understood their needs. Staff treated people well and behaved
kindly and inspectors saw many professional and positive
interactions between staff and patients while we were on the
wards.
- Staff supported patients to have access to opportunities for
education and work. Where patients risk assessment did not allow
them to go off site staff tried to replicate education and work
opportunities on the hospital site.
- Staff helped patients to stay in contact with families and
carers including during the COVID-19 lockdown.
- Staffing levels had improved by introducing safer staffing
initiatives. Including an extensive program of measures around
governance and safer staffing of wards. This gave senior managers
responsibility to work together for ensuring wards were safely
staffed across each site.
The full report from this inspection will be published
on the CQC website on
Wednesday 1 June.
Notes to Editors
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the CQC’s regulatory role has
not changed. CQC’s core purpose of keeping people safe is always
driving decisions about when and where we inspect. As the risks
from the pandemic change, we are evolving how we regulate
services to reflect what we have learnt during this time. You can
read more about our current approach on our website.
CQC is listening to what people are saying about services to help
detect any changes in care. If there is evidence people are at
immediate risk of harm, CQC can and will take action to ensure
that people are being kept safe.
CQC encourages people to give feedback as part of its 'Because we all care'
campaign, and people can give feedback about their care to CQC
via the details below.
