Hendon Hospital

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

The service worked with patients to understand and manage risks. Care met patients' needs in a way which was safe and supportive and enabled them to do the things that mattered to them.

When people communicated their needs, emotions or distress, staff could manage this in a positive way which protected their rights and dignity and maximised learning for the future about the causes of their distress.

We looked for evidence that patients were treated with kindness, empathy and compassion. We assessed the levels of patients’ privacy and dignity afforded to patients. We asked patients to tell us about their experiences and if they felt respected. We also looked for evidence that every effort was made to take patients’ wishes into account and respect their choices, to achieve the best possible outcomes for them.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant people were supported and treated with dignity and respect; and involved as partners in their care.

We have not awarded this service a score for Caring.

Find out about when we will not publish a key question score and what we look at when we assess Caring.

Patients consistently told us staff treated them with kindness, empathy and compassion. Staff treated colleagues from other organisations with kindness and respect.

Staff treated patients with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, and took account of their individual needs. They introduced themselves to patients and said what their role was. Staff were discreet and responsive when caring for patients and took their time to interact with patients and those close to them in a respectful and considerate way, while providing reassurance to patients and those close to them.

Staff in the anaesthetic room responded to patient’s anxieties about their operation and took steps to reduce the stress within the environment. Patients who were particularly anxious or who had a cognitive impairment were able to have a relative or carer with them.

In theatres patients were covered as far as possible and not unduly exposed. Staff were respectful to the anaesthetised patients. On wards and when moving around the hospital, patients were encouraged and supported to be dressed or always covered. Patients said staff treated them well and with kindness.

Staff followed policy to keep patient care and treatment confidential.

The service treated patients as individuals and made sure patients’ care, support and treatment met patients’ needs and preferences. Staff took account of patients’ strengths, abilities, aspirations, culture and unique backgrounds and protected characteristics.

Staff understood and respected the personal, cultural, social, and religious needs of patients and how they may relate to care needs. For example, on Saturday’s patients who were Jewish were unable to use electronic items due to religious reasons, so the ward manager ensured these patients were given manual bells to use in case of an emergency, rather than electronic call bells. These patients were also provided care near the nurse’s station on the ward, so staff could quickly identify if these patients needed any assistance.

The service had a quiet room on the ward for people to use. Staff told us this was used daily as a multifaith room, which gave patients and staff privacy to be able to pray or have time for reflection.

Feedback was gathered through patient surveys and concerns were responded to. We reviewed 10 patient satisfaction surveys from the last 12 months, where patients gave positive feedback describing extremely high-quality care and caring staff. We reviewed patient survey results, where the service consistently scored above the national average for overall experience of service (compared with the NHS England Inpatient Friends and Family Test average score), where satisfaction rates exceeded 95% consistently over the last 12 months.

The service promoted patients’ independence, so patients knew their rights and had choice and control over their own care, treatment and wellbeing.

We saw patients were encouraged to be as independent as soon as they were able following surgery. This included becoming mobile and able to move around the ward area, toilets and bathroom. Physiotherapists provided exercise routines to patients when needed and supported patients to learn new ways of moving, so they could be up out of bed as soon as possible.

The staff listened to and understood patient’s needs, views and wishes. Staff responded to patient’s needs in the moment and acted to minimise any discomfort, concern or distress.

Patients could summon staff with a call bell and staff frequently went to their rooms to assess their needs. Patients we spoke with felt their needs were met in a timely way and staff encouraged patients to use call bells where needed. Staff observed patients and intervened where they saw people were uncomfortable, uncovered or distressed. People appeared well cared for, clean and with the items they needed such as glasses or walking aids close by. Staff encouraged people, where able, to eat and drink sufficiently to maintain health.

There were emergency call bells sited close to each bed and in recovery and theatre to ensure staff could call for additional help and expert help could be summoned quickly.

People who used mobility aids such as walking frames or crutches had them close by and were assisted to use them until they regained their usual level of mobility.

Staff gave patients and those close to them help, emotional support and advice when they needed it. They were empathetic and considerate of the stress of a theatre environment.

The service cared about and promoted the wellbeing of their staff and supported and enabled staff to always deliver person-centred care.

Staff had access to resource and facilities for safe working. This included being able to take breaks, designated rest areas for duty doctors, drink and food out of hours and drinking water.

Staff were able to provide feedback, raise concerns and suggest ways to improve the service or staff experiences and could expect a response. Staff we spoke to on the wards told us their wellbeing was treated as a priority, and they felt supported in their roles. They were positive about the working culture of the service, felt valued and respected by their leaders and their colleagues and felt all staff worked well as a team. They also told us they would take regular breaks during their shifts.

The service had wellbeing initiatives in place, which included dedicated massage days for staff. Staff had access to personalised support which recognised the diversity of a workforce with proactive and reactive measures. Staff we spoke to had various protected characteristics, and many staff told us they had worked at the service for several years and were happy working at the service.

The service and local leaders ensured that staff with protected characteristics felt included and respected within the service. The service had a wellbeing strategy for the period 2025-2028, which signposted colleagues to a free, confidential mental health and wellbeing service available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Leaders promoted the importance of staff wellbeing via wellbeing plans, which staff could tailor according to their individual needs. In addition, the wellbeing strategy had an inclusion calendar which listed major festival dates for all religions for the year ahead. Staff we spoke with told us they felt supported and valued by their leaders and their colleagues.