Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Trust has strengthened our CQC (Care Quality Commission) ‘Good’ rating in our latest inspection.
Our services – providing mental health, learning disability and drug and alcohol services for Surrey and north east Hampshire – have again been rated ‘Good’ by the regulator of health and care services in England and Wales.
Inspectors visited a range of the Trust’s services in January this year to observe their safety and quality and if they are well led. They interviewed staff, people who use services and carers and reviewed a number of key documents. The inspectors made notes against five key questions: Are they safe? Are they responsive to people’s needs? Are they well-led? Are they caring? Are they effective? The Trust was rated Good overall in all five areas.
Outstanding practice was noted on the Trust’s adult inpatient wards, regarding its strategy for caring for people who have a diagnosis of emotionally unstable personality disorder (EUPD) and its physical healthcare clinics which help make sure that people’s physical health needs are integral to their mental healthcare.
Many other examples of good practice were noted in the report, including:
- Staff were proud of the areas in which they worked. They felt encouraged and supported by the trust leaders to try out new ideas and improve the experience of people using their services.
- The Trust has a highly skilled and experienced senior team – who were considered open and honest, presented and spoke with passion, compassion and authenticity.
- There is a clear vision, underpinned by a set of values that reflect a real commitment to people, both staff and patients – and were well understood by staff
- Patient safety incidents were managed well. Colleagues recognised incidents and reported them appropriately. Managers investigated incidents and shared lessons with their teams and the wider organisation.
Fiona Edwards, Chief Executive of Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, said:
“I’m delighted that our services have strengthened their Good rating and that the inspectors found much to praise on their visit. The positive comments that we had maintained - and built upon - improvements made in the past and particularly that our staff “showed caring, compassionate attitudes, are passionate and proud to work for the Trust” are a real credit to my hardworking and dedicated colleagues and thoroughly well deserved. The feedback is especially pleasing given that the inspection came at a time when our adult community teams were working through major changes in practice due to the separation of social care workers from our integrated services last autumn.
“Of course, the inspectors also found things we should improve and we have already been stepping up our response in our drive to provide outstanding care to communities across Surrey and north east Hampshire.”
The three key areas noted in the report for improvement were: more needed to be done to better patient experiences by improving the ward environment at the Abraham Cowley Unit in Chertsey while plans to redevelop the unit get underway; some aspects of medicines management, particularly in ensuring that people store medicines safely – which the report notes the Trust took immediate action to remedy; and for mental health crisis services to develop a better understanding of how to provide care to people who may also have a learning disability or autism.