The early feedback from our CQC inspection

Chief Executive Daniel Elkeles said: “Our hospitals recently underwent a thorough inspection from the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), and although we will not have their report until spring of next year, the early feedback from the Head of Inspectors indicates that our staff and organisation have a lot to be proud of.

“However, like many large hospital trusts, the inspection team have highlighted some areas that could be improved and asked us to provide immediate assurance around some aspects of our critical care services. As you would expect, this is something that we responded to very quickly, and have taken clear steps to ensure that any possible issues were resolved promptly.

“I am pleased to say that the CQC have confirmed that they are assured we have responded appropriately and taken robust action.”

The actions which have provided assurance to our inspectors include:

Introducing the Acute Response Team – a trust-wide, 24/7 service made up of senior doctors and nurses who care for patients whose condition is deteriorating

Asking St George's (whose critical care service was rated as outstanding) to provide on-site leadership for our service.

The CQC are also assured we are looking at the right issues to ensure our patients remain safe, that they have confidence in our senior leadership team, and are pleased with the responsiveness we have shown to their requests.