Decision details

For the Committee to provide commentary on the East Cheshire NHS Trust Quality Accounts which will be incorporated into the final document before it is published, as per NHS England and NHS Improvement recommendations to allow scrutiny and comment.

Paul Devlin, the Deputy Director of Nursing at East Cheshire Trust attended the meeting via Microsoft Teams and updated the Committee on the progress through the Quality Account.

The Committee were advised that all services had seen pressures that related to the pandemic, however there had been a number of achievements such as:

the trust became a Disability Confident Employer;

the opening of The Christie at the Macclesfield site;

the opening of same day emergency care unit; and

ongoing support from community for staff.

Staff had continued to respond to the development of care models, and progression of recovery plans. The focus for teams was now on improved care and this work had carried into current year through an improvement plan. 

A designated panel now investigated when falls had occurred and staff were supported in prevention work.

In terms of Infection and prevention control, the focus continued, and other infection rates remained within trajectory.

Wait times at East Cheshire had increased and this was a focus for teams. 

Intrapartum services had been paused at Macclesfield General Hospital but it was planned to re-establish the service this year, the Trust had been working closely with patients to support this.

Priorities for 2022/23 were outlined within quality strategy and mirrored the key lines of enquiry that Care Quality Commission (CQC) used when inspecting.

The Committee were invited to ask questions and make comment, there was some discussion about:

Bad patient feedback, the Committee were advised that in terms of response rates to feedback, the Emergency Department tended to be low, comments that related to length of wait were reflective of operational challenges. 

The Committee noted that despite intrapartum care being paused, planned home births still went ahead.

There had been Improvements in diagnostic waiting times, scanning and radiology and in terms of number of patients who had waited over 52 weeks for treatment.  Those who waited over 104 weeks had been supported with surveillance, however the Deputy Director of Nursing acknowledged that 52 and 104 week waits were unacceptable, a Harm Review was undertaken to assess if harm had occurred during wait times and that was reported to the Trust assurance committee.

The Committee acknowledged the challenges with waiting times, and asked for a more detailed report to be brought back to a future meeting with comparative data to other Trusts.

The Committee noted that both local hospitals had participated in the Ward Accreditation Scheme, and queried the burden on staff to achieve the accreditation.  The Deputy Director of Nursing gave reassurances to the Committee that the monthly audit process sampled three patients in significant detail and conducted a detailed review of patient safety and feedback.  Audit compliance was good but if patients had negative experiences this was a cause for concern to the Trust.  In terms of workload, this was not considered an unmanageable burden for ward managers.

RESOLVED: That:

·         Paul Devlin be thanked for his attendance and presentation to the Committee;

·         the East Cheshire NHS Trust Quality Account be received and noted; and

·         comments from the meeting be fed back to the Trust for inclusion within the Quality Account 2021/22.