Report demands New Cross Hospital improve care of elderly
Action must be taken and more staff hired to improve care for elderly patients at a hospital in the region, a trailblazing report has demanded.
New Cross Hospital in Wolverhampton is among the first hospitals in the country to be judged by the Care Quality Commission as part of a new wave of inspections.
It spent three days visiting the Wednesfield-based site in September and also found that end-of-life and infection protocols needed to be addressed. However staff were praised by the report released today and the trust was commended for efforts that had been taken.
Bosses said they welcomed feedback and had taken on the CQC's concerns, one of which was a shortage of midwives.
Around the time of the inspection the hospital's year-old £1.6m maternity unit shut to allow 16 new staff to be recruited to bring the department up to standard.
The new CQC inspections are designed to be more thorough and transparent.
It found that there was a shortage of nurses in elderly patient wards. It said the hospital 'must take action' to improve the responsiveness of care for older patients.
The report said: "We were concerned that older people's care, surgical and dementia wards were not sufficiently staffed, particularly at night, where there was one registered nurse for every 10 patients.
"We felt this was impacting the safety and effectiveness of care."
Debbie Widdowson led the CQC inspection team in September and met with the trust this week for an update on issues highlighted during their visit. She said: "They've told us they've already taken some actions, particularly around recruiting midwives. The response has been very positive so far.
"Care for older people is a concern for us, specifically staffing levels around some of the elderly care wards. We understand they're putting an action plan in place."
It was expected that the trust would be given an Ofsted-style rating, but the CQC said it had not fully developed its methodology for the new wave of inspections.
Trust chief executive David Loughton said: "The inspectors found many examples of good practice which are a tribute to the hard work and commitment of staff across the trust.
"Providing a quality health service is a never-ending challenge. And the people of Wolverhampton can be assured that we will not rest on our laurels, but will always strive to continue to improve what we do."
Inspectors will undertake a follow-up visit in the near future to report on the trust's progress.
