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All the reasons why Huddersfield Royal Infirmary’s A&E has been downgraded to ‘requires improvement’ by health watchdog

The accident and emergency department at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary needs to improve rapidly after staff raised concerns that it’s sometimes too busy and overcrowded, compromising patient safety.

Patients have endured long waits over 12 hours and hurried handovers classed as ‘poor’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) which has downgraded the overall rating from ‘good’ to ‘requires improvement’ after carrying out an assessment in January and February in response to concerns raised about patient care and treatment.

The unit opened two years ago on May 22, 2024, on South Drive, replacing the old casualty department on the other side of the hospital.

Although the CQC says the unit is rated good for being caring, well-led and responsive, it requires improvement for its safety and effectiveness.

Chris Storton, CQC deputy director of hospitals (secondary and specialist care) in the North-East and Yorkshire, said: “When we inspected urgent and emergency care at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary we found staff were kind and working hard to meet people’s needs under considerable pressure but weren’t always able to do so due to the department being extremely busy and overcrowded.

“Staff reported periods where the service felt unsafe due to high demand, particularly at night, with paediatrics as a particular concern. Despite this, staff continued to prioritise safety and manage risks as best they could under difficult circumstances.

“We saw corridor care compromising people’s safety, privacy and dignity with limited staff available to provide safe care. People, including those with cognitive impairment, were cared for in corridors which limited staff oversight, and some were moved overnight to areas not designed for inpatient care.

 

 

“Handovers between services were often poor and lacked important details. For example, staff hadn’t informed another department that someone was being treated for cancer and therefore had a weakened immune system. Other people were handed over without time-critical medications and medical history being explained.

“It was positive to see teams working well together across the service. Nurses with specialisms in diabetes, dementia and falls were employed so care could be given quickly to people in those risk areas.

“We have told leaders where we expect to see rapid and continued improvements and will continue to monitor the service closely to keep people safe during this time. We have begun the process of taking regulatory action in order to protect people further.”

Inspectors found:

  • There were variations in how quickly staff administered medicines to people identified of being at high risk of sepsis;
  • Many people had been waiting for over 12 hours with no food or drink being offered;
  • People sometimes waited without being offered pain relief meaning they were in discomfort whilst waiting to be seen;
  • People’s bed rail assessments weren’t always completed to ensure they were protected from falls;
  • Staff were aware of the key themes from recent complaints and incidents and felt confident raising issues and concerns with leaders when they arose;
  • The department was visibly clean with up-to-date cleaning schedules on show;
  • Inspectors saw areas of good practice including mental health liaison support and proactive learning from incidents.

In a statement, Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust said: “We are very sorry that at the time the CQC visited us some patients did not receive the standard of urgent and emergency care they should expect at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.

“The findings in this report reflect issues we recognise, particularly around long waits, overcrowding and the impact this can have on people’s comfort, dignity and safety when our department is at its busiest.

“We apologise unreservedly to those patients and families whose experience fell below the high standards they deserve.

 

 

“Patient safety is our absolute priority. Since the inspection in January, when we were experiencing some of our highest ever levels of attendances, we have already undertaken significant work to address the CQC’s concerns.

“This includes the introduction of new processes to improve information sharing between our internal teams and our healthcare partners and better access to food and drink for our patients.

“We were pleased to read in the report that most people the CQC spoke with were warm and positive about their experience in our emergency department and that inspectors observed respectful, caring interactions and patients feeling listened to, safe and involved in decisions.

“While we are proud that inspectors recognised the kindness, compassion and dedication of our staff, it is clear that the pressures on the department have, at times, meant we have not delivered care in the way we want to.

“That is not where we want to be, and we take full responsibility for putting it right.”

Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR (https://ah-pr.com/) specialising in press releases, blogging, website content, copywriting and ghost-writing autobiographies.









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