THE trust that runs Morecambe Bay hospitals could soon be taken out of special measures after inspectors said it longer should be rated as inadequate.

The latest Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection report, published today, says the trust has made progress in all the areas it identified in its critical assessment of February 2014.

In its latest report, the CQC said 'staff were caring and compassionate, and treated people with dignity and respect'.

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Professor Sir Mike Richards, CQC’s chief inspector of hospitals, has now recommended to health sector regulator Monitor that the University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay Trust should be taken out of special measures.

The CQC visited the three main hospitals run by the trust - Westmorland General Hospital, Furness General Hospital and Royal Lancaster Infirmary - during July 2015.

Inspectors reported improvements in leadership, staffing levels, governance, incident reporting, and risk management.

The report acknowledged that 'the trust had made progress in all the areas we [CQC] identified in our inspection in February 2014'.

One particular area singled out for improving was the High Dependency Unit at Furness General Hospital, with the CQC reporting that previous staffing issues in this area had been 'comprehensively addressed, and there was sufficient staffing numbers of nurses to meet the needs of patients at all times'.

Professor Richards said: “It is apparent that the trust is on a journey of improvement and progress is being made both clinically and in the trust’s governance structures.”

Overall, the trust received a new rating of ‘requires improvement’, with all services rated as ‘good’ for caring. No services are now rated as ‘inadequate’.

Trust chief executive Jackie Daniel said: “I am very pleased that the CQC has recognised the progress that has been made since our last inspection, particularly that progress has been made in every area that they previously highlighted as requiring further action.

“The improved rating and recommendation for the trust to come out of special measures is testament to the hard work and commitment of an incredibly loyal workforce. Our staff, along with our governors, partners, volunteers and the public have worked hard together to make the change needed, and I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their continued support.

“We have a talented and professional workforce and the rating of ‘good’ for being ‘caring’ is recognition of this. But, we mustn’t be complacent; we still have a lot of work to do to ensure we provide consistently high standards of care across all of our services."

Morecambe and Lunesdsale MP David Morris said: "This is fantastic news for all at the trust, and shows that the hard work and determination by the staff has paid off. I am pleased that I have been able to work with the management of the trust in such a positive way over the past few years and have always found them to be committed to turning the hospital around.

"I visit the hospital regularly and I have personally seen vast improvements in service delivery and also morale of the staff. It is also noticed too in my email inbox as the number of complaints about services has drastically fell in the last year.

"I am really proud of all the staff at the Royal Lancaster Infirmary for their dedication to patient care and I am confident that the staff in charge of the trust have more plans to further improve services.

"Turning around a trust such as this one isn’t easy, but I have full faith in the management team that they know where the Trust needs to be to become a centre of excellence in our area for the future."

Areas still needing improvement include:

  • ensuring hospital buildings are fit for purpose and properly maintained;
  • enough suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced people must be deployed to meet the needs of the patients;
  • referral to treatment times in surgical specialities must improve;
  • ensuring that the resuscitation trolleys on the children’s ward are situated in areas that make them easily accessible in an emergency; and
  • staff must follow policies and procedures around managing medicines, including intravenous fluids particularly in medical care services and critical care services.