I am delighted to welcome this morning’s news from the Care Quality Commission (CQC), which has confirmed marked improvements at Medway Maritime Hospital in patient safety, leadership and staff engagement among senior and middle managers. This has all been down to the determined and committed staff and leadership of our local hospital.
While Medway Maritime will remain in Special Measures for the time being, this recognition from the CQC is a huge leap forward towards achieving the outcome we all are striving for. The ambition has always to provide the best possible care to the people of Kent and Medway and all those involved recognise that there is still some way to go.
The CQC have confirmed that since their last visit in the summer, our local hospital has been safer, cleaner and more responsive to the needs of patients. Patients are now seen quicker when they arrive at the Emergency Department, see fewer different doctors, and are discharged to the comfort of their own homes quicker.
I would like to thank everyone who has helped achieve this in such a short time and I appreciate their ongoing drive to address the final issues. More still needs to be done to address staffing levels and recruit more permanent colleagues to reduce the dependency on agency staff. This includes turning some of attention to ensuring the local NHS Trust is as efficient as possible.
Nevertheless, I have full confidence that with the hospital staff’s continued tireless efforts we will be welcoming further good news following the Commission’s next inspection in six months’ time.
The letter from Professor Sir Mike Richards, Chief Inspector of Hospitals to the Secretary of State for Health can be found in the attached document.