Patient experience best in country
Patients have voted a Shropshire hospital best in the country for their experience on the wards.
The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital near Oswestry has been highlighted as the best in England in the results of the latest Adult Inpatient Survey.
Those who spent at least one night in hospital, and who were discharged during July 2016, were given the opportunity to participate in the national survey carried out by the Care Quality Commission.
The hospital received the highest scores in the country in 17 of the 72 questions relevant to their patients – including the question asking patients to rate the overall experience of the care they received.
Totalling 9.2 out of 10 the overall score was– an improvement on the 9.0 scored in 2015. The other trusts in the top three were the Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital and The Clatterbridge Cancer Centre, who both scored 9.1.
The specialist orthopaedic hospital also attracted the top overall scores in the ‘hospital and ward’, ‘doctors’ and ‘operations and procedures’ sections of the survey.
Mark Brandreth, Chief Executive, said: “The results of this survey really do make great reading for everyone connected with RJAH. They truly reflect our determination to provide world class care and support. It reflects the commitment, the dedication and the skill shown by staff in all areas of our hospital.
“We see and hear so much about the pressure the NHS is under at the moment and the difficulties it faces, but these results remind us that there is still so much that we can be proud of.
“Feedback like this from our patients is very gratifying, but I also know we will not rest on our laurels. We can and will look for opportunities to make continuous improvement to deliver ever better patient experience and outcomes.”
Highlights within the report included that patients at RJAH had more confidence and trust in the doctors treating them than at any other hospital in the country an average of 9.8 out of 10.
Hospital food was also rated the best in the country for the second year running. Cleanliness also scores well, with toilets and bathrooms rated cleanest in the country and wards and rooms rated second cleanest.
The report highlights some areas where the hospital needs to do better. These include the number of patients who experience a change in their admission date – 30 per cent at RJAH against a national average of 20 per cent.
Bev Tabernacle, Director of Nursing, said: “These results are a reflection of the great care provided by the Trust to the patients who use our services. We will analyse the data in great depth to highlight areas for progress and draw up action plans to tackle these."
