Rivers Hospital

Updated 14 October 2026

Rivers Hospital is operated by Ramsay Health Care UK Operations Limited and is an Independent Health provider. The hospital has 59 beds. Facilities include five operating theatres and X-ray, outpatient and diagnostic facilities. The hospital provides surgery, medical care, services for children and young people (CYP), outpatients and diagnostic imaging. We assessed all services.
We undertook a short notice onsite assessment on 15 April 2026 with a follow up visit on 20 April 2026.
This was an aged, rated assessment and we inspected these services using our comprehensive single assessment methodology. The main service provided was surgery. The ratings for each service have been combined to give an overall location rating of good.

Updated 2 February 2026

The Rivers Hospital is an independent hospital based in Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire. The hospital first opened in 1992 and operates under the Ramsay Health Group. We inspected this service on 15 April 2026. This inspection was carried out as a scheduled, unannounced inspection.   

The diagnostic imaging service is provided within the hospital. The department consists of 1 conventional x-ray, 1 fluoroscopy room, 1 mammography room 1 DEXA Scanner, 1 Computed Tomography (CT) scanner, and 1 Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner. These are spread over 2 floors, and both floors have a waiting area with changing room facilities. The service has an x-ray facility with computed radiography (CR), which was the digital replacement of conventional x-ray film. X-rays were taken in a single use treatment room.   

Patients are referred to the service by their private consultant and some patients are referred by their NHS GP. The service covers Sawbridgeworth and surrounding areas.  
    
The service was registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to provide diagnostic and screening procedures.  Diagnostic imaging was offered by the service to support its primary function of orthopaedic medicine.  

We found staff provided kind and compassionate care and patients were positive about their experiences.   

We found the service had safe systems in place and the service maintained equipment regularly.   

Updated 2 February 2026

Ramsay Health Care Rivers Hospital is an independent hospital located in Sawbridgeworth, on the Hertfordshire–Essex border. It primarily serves the communities of Hertfordshire, Essex and East London, while also accepting patients from a wider geographical area through private medical insurance, self-pay arrangements and NHS contracts.

The hospital provided a wide range of surgical and medical services.

The service had enough staff to care for people and keep them safe. Staff received training in key skills and managed infection prevention and control risks effectively. They assessed patient risks and took appropriate action to minimise harm. Premises, facilities and equipment were clean, well maintained and suitable for their intended purpose. Medicines were stored and managed safely, and incidents were investigated promptly with a focus on learning, continuous improvement and the sharing of best practice.

Staff assessed people’s health needs and delivered effective care and treatment in line with national guidance and best practice. They monitored patients’ nutritional needs, managed pain relief effectively and worked collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams and external partners to ensure positive outcomes. The service routinely reviewed the effectiveness of care and treatment and used the findings to drive improvements and maintain good patient outcomes. Staff treated people with compassion, kindness and respect, maintaining their privacy and dignity while recognising individual needs and preferences. They were responsive to patients’ needs and provided emotional support to reduce anxiety and distress. The hospital had systems in place to support staff wellbeing, promote safe working practices and provide professional support. Staff spoke positively about the leadership and the support they received from managers.

Updated 2 February 2026

As part of our comprehensive assessment of Rivers Hospital, we inspected the outpatient service on 15 April 2026.

During the assessment, we spoke with 5 patients, 10 family members and 15 staff, including managers, nurses, healthcare assistants and consultants.

The service provided safe, effective and person‑centred care. Patients told us staff were kind, respectful and involved them in decisions about their care. Staff explained treatment options clearly and supported people to make informed choices. Waiting times were generally low, and flexible appointment times helped people access care.

Staff worked well together to deliver coordinated care across services. The service monitored patient outcomes and feedback and used this to improve care. Leaders were visible, knowledgeable and supportive, and staff told us they felt able to develop in their roles.

However, the service’s governance systems were not always used consistently. Team meetings did not always take place as planned, some policies were out of date, and there was limited evidence that all audits were completed. Out‑of‑date policies had also been identified at the provider’s previous inspection in 2019, which showed improvements had not always been sustained.

We also found gaps in clinical record keeping, where assessments were not always recorded onto patient’s medical record in a timely way. While staff managed high levels of activity and adapted to changes, clinics sometimes ran late. This increased pressure on staff and made planning more difficult.

Leaders had started to take action to address these issues. This included recording overrunning clinics as incidents, carrying out additional audits and reinforcing expectations around record keeping.

Updated 2 February 2026

The assessment was on 15 April 2026. This service was rated good. Services for Children and Young people were embedded within Rivers Hospital. Rivers Hospital within the Ramsay Health group. The hospital offers a range of services to children and adults including surgery, medical care, diagnostic imaging and outpatient services alongside a children and young people services.

We undertook this assessment due the timescale since the last inspection in 2019.

There was a strict admissions criteria that meant that most children required a GP referral in order to receive surgical treatment at the hospital. The hospital conducted day case procedures and did not permit overnight stays. The service had an embedded governance structure in place that meant paediatric registered nurses guided children and young people and their parents or guardians through the care pathway.

Updated 2 February 2026

We carried out an onsite assessment on 15 April to 16 April 2026. This was a comprehensive assessment due to aged rating. We looked at 33 quality statements across the key questions of safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led. 
 

Rivers Hospital is operated by Ramsay Health Care UK. It provides surgery for both privately funded and National Health Service (NHS) patients. The hospital has 5 operating theatres, a recovery area and ward areas. It had 59 inpatient beds across 2 wards. Orchard Ward, which specialises in caring for patients requiring orthopaedic surgery, General Surgery and some medical patients and Meadow Ward which provides care for patients requiring ear, nose and throat (ENT) surgery, gynaecology, urology, cosmetic surgery, ophthalmology, oral and maxillofacial surgery and chemotherapy. No intensive care facilities are provided at this location.
 

During our assessment we spoke with passionate and caring staff and leaders. There was a shared vision to deliver good care across all areas of surgery. There was a focus on patient experience and outcomes, supporting patients to make well informed decisions about their care. 
Equality, diversity and inclusion were supported throughout the service with training and guidance to prevent health inequalities. 
 

The service had effective risk monitoring systems that were supported by clear governance and accountability structures. 
Leaders were skilled and experienced. The quality and performance of the service was monitored and benchmarked against national services.