17.04.13
CQC survey highlights need to involve patients in their care
Almost a quarter of patients in care homes say doctors discuss their care in front of them as if they were not there, new research from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) shows.
The hospital inpatients survey included 64,505 participants and found that a fifth felt they were not given enough information about their condition and treatment. 17% of those surveyed reported they had waited for more than five minutes after using the call button because they needed assistance from a nurse or doctor, and 1% got no response at all.
One in ten suggested there were not enough nurses on duty and 17% said they did not get enough help to eat their meals. Although there had been improvements in areas such as cleanliness, privacy and relationships with doctors or nurses, the CQC report warns on progress with having someone to talk to about their worries or fears, and involving patients in their own care.
Jane Cummings, NHS England’s Chief Nursing Officer, said: “The NHS must get it right every time for every patient. This survey is, on the whole, encouraging and demonstrates progress in key areas. However, there remains too much variation in the quality of care provided and hospitals need to look closely at what they need to do to improve.
“This survey helps identify areas where we need to change so that every patient can be confident they will be treated with dignity, compassion and care.
“The findings of the Frances report into the care at Mid Staffordshire NHS Trust raised really serious challenges for the NHS. We must now all act quickly and effectively to make a difference by ensuring everything we do places the patient at the heart of the NHS.
“We have a long way to go and we need to ensure that we are learning from the best hospitals we have.”
Michelle Mitchell, Charity Director General at Age UK, said: “Whilst it is encouraging that there have been small improvements on inpatient relationships with nurses and doctors and that most patients felt they were treated with dignity and respect, it is deeply disappointing that there has been no significant improvement since 2011.
“Dignity needs to be a priority for all those responsible for delivering care and should be a fundamental staple in every care setting. Patients need to be involved more, asked what they think of the quality of care and if there is a problem then people must know how to complain. To have an NHS that is truly patient centred and committed to providing dignified care, there needs to be a real change in the caring relationship.”
Katherine Murphy, chief executive of The Patients' Association, said: “Far too many patients, many of them elderly and vulnerable, are left absolutely terrified in hospital because when they need urgent help, the call goes unanswered, and when they need assistance with the most basic tasks, it is not there.”
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