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National survey highlights further improvements at UHMBT

2 July 2020

Patient experience at the three main hospitals ran by University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) continues to improve with the majority of people saying they had a very good experience - according to the latest National Adult Inpatient Survey published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The survey looks at the experiences of people who were discharged from an NHS acute hospital after spending at least one night in hospital during July 2019.

Overall, 8.3 out of 10 respondents said they had a very good experience whilst being cared for in one of UHMBT’s hospitals. The Trust also ranked higher than most trusts in two questions – whether members of staff answered questions in a way that patients could understand, and whether staff explained how an operation or procedure had gone in a way patients could understand.

Compared with its own results in the 2018 survey, UHMBT ranked significantly higher for five questions and significantly lower for none of the questions. There were no significant differences between last year’s and this year’s results for the remaining 56 questions.

Areas that the Trust has performed better compared to last year’s survey include:

  • Patients having confidence and trust in Doctors and other clinical staff (e.g. physiotherapists, speech therapists, psychologists)
  • Patients felt that different members of staff worked well together
  • Patients felt involved in decisions about their care and treatment and in their discharge from hospital
  • Patients felt that their privacy was maintained throughout examinations or treatment
  • Patients understood the next steps of their care after leaving hospital
  • Patients felt that they were treated with respect and dignity

More than 75,000 people across the UK took part in the survey carried out by Picker Institute Europe. UHMBT’s results are based on the responses of 536 inpatients who were cared for in Furness General Hospital in Barrow, Westmorland General Hospital in Kendal or the Royal Lancaster Infirmary in July 2019. The Trust’s response rate was the same as the national average of 45%. 

Barry Rigg, Head of Patient Experience, UHMBT, said: "Patient feedback is one of the many ways that we listen and learn about how we can meet our aim of being an organisation that provides the highest quality care.

“Patient surveys like this are important in giving us a picture of what we are doing well. We are always looking at where we can further improve the services we provide. Patient care and the patients' experience is always our priority.

“Colleagues and volunteers should be proud of the improvements they have made and recognise this as a solid foundation in providing even better patient experience in the future. In taking time to reflect on how far we have come, we have considered how we can use the survey findings to develop our services further."

Areas of further work include:

  • Choice of food provided for inpatients
  • How clinicians can help to control pain following a procedure
  • Discussion of expectations following a procedure
  • Information provided about who to contact if patients are worried about a condition or treatment after leaving hospital
  • Information provided on further health or social care services needed after leaving hospital

Sally Young, Quality Assurance Matron, UHMBT, said: "The results of the survey are a testament to the dedicated staff working across our hospitals to make sure that service users and their families are cared for to the highest possible standards.

“We are delighted to see further improvements in the results again this year in a number of categories, and are keen to work on the areas where we have further room for improvement."

Sue Smith OBE, Executive Chief Nurse and Deputy Chief Executive, UHMBT, said: “Listening to patients and staff about their experiences whilst in our care - what we do well and where we can improve - is absolutely essential.

“We still have lots of work to do to further improve but these results help to show us that we are on the right path.

“I’d like to thank all those that took the time to feedback on their experiences, and our multi-disciplinary teams across our adult inpatient services for all their hard work in achieving this for patients and families across Morecambe Bay.”

For more information on the CQC inpatient survey and to view the survey results, visit:

https://www.cqc.org.uk/provider/RTX/surveys