A shocking analysis has revealed that almost half of NHS hospitals in England are failing to meet basic standards set by healthcare regulators.
The data shows that 49 per cent of care homes were rated as ‘inadequate’ or ‘requires improvement’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
These rankings mean that a service is ‘underperforming’ or ‘not performing as well as it should’, respectively.
Hospitals in Uxbridge, Hull, York and Blackpool were among the six worst, according to analysis by medical negligence specialist Patient Claim Line.
In contrast, 22 hospitals achieved the CQC rating of ‘Outstanding’, around seven per cent of the total number of NHS hospitals in England.
The six worst performing hospitals in England were The Hillingdon Hospital in Uxbridge, The York Hospital in York, The Barkantine Centre in London, Blackpool Victoria Hospital in Blackpool and Corbett Hospital in Stourbridge.
The remainder, about 44 percent, were rated “Good,” meaning they met expectations.
Inspectors from the CQC found that hospitals with ‘inadequate’ facilities are experiencing issues including hygiene problems, delays in care, uncooperative staff and a lack of leadership.
At Hillingdon Hospital in Uxbridge, one of the worst hospitals, inspectors wrote: ‘Infection prevention and control has deteriorated’.
They “found inconsistencies in staff hand hygiene practices” and also noted that the hospital had “poor recognition of sepsis” – a response to an infection that can quickly be fatal.
Inspectors at Hull Royal Infirmary’s maternity ward found problems with the care of mothers and babies.
‘Systems, processes and risks in the antenatal day unit/triage department were not well managed, leading to long waits before women were seen and a chaotic environment that was not fit for purpose,’ they wrote.
At Hillingdon Hospital specifically, inspectors wrote: ‘There was a deterioration in infection prevention and control’ and they ‘found inconsistencies in hand hygiene practices among staff’
Inspectors at Hull Royal Infirmary’s maternity unit have noted problems with the care of mothers and babies
Inspectors at Blackpool Victoria Hospital’s emergency department said ‘the department felt chaotic at times and we were concerned about the lack of oversight of the risks from the leadership team’
Inspectors added that: ‘Staff did not always work well together across departments and some staff members spoke of unfriendliness between staff members.’
At Blackpool Victoria Hospital’s emergency department, inspectors said “the department felt chaotic at times and we were concerned about the lack of oversight of risks by the leadership team”.
Nermeen Salahuddin, a trainee lawyer at the Patient Claim Line, called the findings “deeply disturbing”.
“These reviews highlight serious issues in patient safety, quality of care and hospital management,” she said.
‘As lawyers representing people affected by medical negligence, we see firsthand the devastating impact that substandard care can have on patients and their families.
It is imperative that immediate action is taken to address these shortcomings and ensure that all patients receive the safe, high-quality care they deserve.’
The report came after Health Secretary Wes Streeting issued a special warning to Britons earlier this year over the CQC’s assessment of hospitals.
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Corbett Hospital in Stourbridge was rated ‘inadequate’ by inspectors, meaning ‘services are underperforming and we have taken action against the person or organisation that runs it’
The Barkantine Centre in London was another hospital rated ‘inadequate’ by NHS inspectors
He said a shocking review showed the CQC was “rotten” and described some ratings as “fabricated”.
Mr Streeting added that it had been ten years since some hospitals, GP surgeries and care homes had been inspected.
He also said there was evidence that some assessments were “effectively fabricated and concocted using partial insights and inspections combined with historical assessments and judgments.”
He even urged members of the public checking the ratings on the CQC website to ‘take them with a pinch of salt’.
The report came just days after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer called the NHS, a healthcare organisation with an annual budget of £160 billion, “broken”.
He warned that the system must “reform or perish” and promised to carry out the “biggest reform” of the neglected system since its birth in the 1940s.
His comments followed a damning report by Lord Darzi, a pioneering surgeon and former Labour health minister, which concluded that the NHS was in a “critical state”.