Nottinghamshire Hospice

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Throughout our assessment we observed that patients and families were at the heart of everything staff did. Staff responded compassionately when patients or their relatives and loved ones needed help. Support was always given by caring staff, to meet the needs of the patients and their families and feedback from people who used the service was continually positive about the way staff treated them. Staff identified patients who needed extra support and discussed changes to patients’ care and treatment with them, their families and their care givers. The service provided support to families and care givers to maintain their own health and wellbeing. We spoke with patients and relatives in the hospice and observed their care and treatment. There was a strong, patient-centred culture from all staff.
Patients and their loved ones were without exception very positive about the care and compassion they received from staff. They described how the supportive and empathetic approach by staff had a positive impact on their emotional wellbeing.

One of the patients told us, “The staff are all fantastic”. another patient told us. “I simply cannot fault them”. A third patient told us, “The care here is second to none”.

Staff were discreet and responsive when caring for patients. Staff took time to interact with patients and those close to them in a respectful and considerate way. Patients said staff treated them well and with kindness.

This service scored 95 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Throughout our assessment we observed that patients and families were at the heart of everything staff did. Staff responded compassionately when patients or their relatives and loved ones needed help. Support was always given by caring staff, to meet the needs of the patients and their families and feedback from people who used the service was continually positive about the way staff treated them. Staff identified patients who needed extra support and discussed changes to patients’ care and treatment with them, their families and their care givers. The service provided support to families and care givers to maintain their own health and wellbeing. We spoke with patients and relatives in the hospice and observed their care and treatment. There was a strong, patient-centred culture from all staff.
Patients and their loved ones were without exception very positive about the care and compassion they received from staff. They described how the supportive and empathetic approach by staff had a positive impact on their emotional wellbeing.

One of the patients told us, “The staff are all fantastic”. another patient told us. “I simply cannot fault them”. A third patient told us, “The care here is second to none”.

Staff were discreet and responsive when caring for patients. Staff took time to interact with patients and those close to them in a respectful and considerate way. Patients said staff treated them well and with kindness.
 

Staff treated patients with great compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, took account of their individual needs, and helped them understand their conditions. They provided exceptional emotional support to patients, families and care givers.

Staff ensured that patients and those close to them were partners in decisions about their care and treatment. Patients individual needs and preferences were central to the delivery of the tailored services.

The service planned care to meet the needs of local people, took account of patients’ individual needs, and made it easy for people to give feedback.

Patients and their relatives told us staff were alert to their needs. One person told us, “I like my privacy, but it is also nice to know that there are people around if you need them". Another person told us “When I go for hospital appointments, I am just a number, but here, they always treat ne as an individual”.

One relative told us staff responded quickly and with kindness if their family member needed support.

The hospice had a dedicated well-being team which provided spiritual care and counselling support for patients and families which extended after death.

People and their relatives we spoke with as part of our assessment, told us about how well staff treated them and respected their individuality. How they were always informed and given choices about the care that was provided and how they were encouraged to be as independent as possible.

One patient we spoke with described the staff as “absolutely marvellous” and all the patients we spoke with told us that the staff could not do enough to help patients and their families and care givers. They all felt that their individual opinions were valued and heard, and their wishes respected. All the people we spoke with told us that the staff went above and beyond, and patients felt safe and secure and at home in the hospice.

Patient wishes for their final days were heard, respected and acted on by hospice staff. Staff went above and beyond to enable dying patients’ involvement at chosen celebrations and momentous occasions in their final days of life and no ask was too big. Patients and those close to them were partners in decisions about their care and treatment. Relatives and care givers unanimously spoke highly of the care their loved one had received and reported that had felt fully involved in all aspects of care and had also had their opinions considered.

People were supported by staff that were committed to providing high quality care and treatment. Staff had an excellent understanding of people's needs. They had a holistic approach, providing emotional, spiritual and psychological support for people using the service and those close to them.
As mentioned earlier in this report. The service used the (ReSPECT) care plan. This provides health and care professionals reacting to an urgent situation with a synopsis of proposals to help them to make immediate choices about that person’s care and treatment. If a patient has a do not resuscitate order, (DNACPR) this is also included as part of the ReSPECT paperwork.
 

The culture within the organisation was fully focussed on the needs of patients, their care givers, families and loved ones. This shared vision was demonstrated in the caring and compassionate way that care was delivered. Individual staff reported they were respected and valued and there were no negative comments about their experiences working or volunteering for the service. Staff felt supported, respected, valued positive and proud to work in the organisation. Staff told us they felt pride in the work they carried out to ensure patients received good quality care.
Staff at all levels received regular meaningful appraisals, which provided them with development and career opportunities as well as their own wellbeing and safety being supported. One staff member told us they ‘would not work anywhere else’ and were proud to support the people who used services.
Staff told us the service promoted positive physical, emotional and mental health with access to support networks and a range of benefits. For example, the employee assistance programme which included GP access, staff counselling. In addition, staff had access to a discount program for members of the emergency services, NHS, social care sector, armed forces, and teaching community.
As a result of financial challenges, staff consultations had taken place and some staff were having their work hours reduced and potential redundancies planned. This was causing considerable anxiety and confusion for a number of staff since, a recruitment drive had taken place and there had been a recent recruitment of new staff.
The service engaged with staff through an annual staff survey, the results of which were then shared with staff. This meant issues highlighted could be discussed in further detail, to better support staff.

The staff survey undertaken in November 2024 showed 96% of staff felt they were treated with fairness and respected as an individual by their colleagues. However, only 69% of staff stated they had confidence in the senior leadership team and 80% of staff who completed the survey were satisfied with their job role.