Major NHS trust downgraded by care watchdog amid safety fears

One of the largest hospital trusts in England has been downgraded by the care watchdog amid safety fears and criticism that bosses did not act on staff concerns.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) said it found bedpans covered in faeces, urine and hair during 10 visits to wards at University Hospitals Birmingham Trust in June.

Staff in A&E told inspectors they were put under pressure to nurse patients in corridors. At one stage 20 ambulances were queuing outside Heartlands Hospital with patients waiting outside.

The CQC said staff felt “disconnected from leaders” who didn’t show an understanding of the pressures they were under.

Consultants to the regulator staff were experiencing fatigue and they felt executives at the trust “were no longer interested in staff welfare”.

In its inspection report, the CQC said staff did not always clean equipment and said labels for when items were last cleaned were being applied incorrectly.

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Source: The Independent, 8 October 2021