Hammersmith Private Hospital

On this page

• Overview
• Shared direction and culture
• Capable, compassionate and inclusive leaders
• Freedom to speak up
• Workforce equality, diversity and inclusion
• Governance, management and sustainability
• Partnerships and communities
• Learning, improvement and innovation

We looked for evidence that there was an inclusive and positive culture of continuous learning and improvement that was based on meeting the needs of people who used services and wider communities. We checked that leaders proactively supported staff and collaborated with partners to deliver care that was safe, integrated, person-centred and sustainable, and to reduce inequalities.

At our last assessment we rated this key question good. At this assessment the rating has remained good. This meant service leaders engendered a positive culture which created the delivery of high-quality care.

This service scored 82 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

The service had a shared vision, strategy and culture. This was based on transparency, equity, equality and human rights, diversity and inclusion, engagement, and understanding challenges and the needs of people. All staff we spoke with described putting patients at the centre of the care they received. The new registered manager encouraged staff to review care from the perspective of the patient. An example of this was the restricted use of an additional bed area due to the isolation a patient may feel when nursed in this area. Staff stated that they only used this area for short examination or the surgeons preoperative consultation as opposed to as a recovery area for post operative patients.

The service had inclusive leaders at all levels who understood the context in which they delivered care, treatment and support and embodied the culture and values of their workforce and organisation. Leaders had the skills, knowledge, experience and credibility to lead effectively. They did so with integrity, openness and honesty. The new manager held regular team meetings not only to share information with the team but to ascertain the views or concerns of the staff at the hospital. These meetings were documented and shared via the team noticeboard so that everyone could review them. The manager had made a point of listening when new in post and resolving some issues which had been long standing for staff.

The service fostered a positive culture where people felt they could speak up and their voice would be heard. Whilst we received two concerns about “poor management” since the new manager had been in post we found that the staff we spoke with felt able to raise any issues with the manager and were confident that they would be dealt with in a fair and equitable manner. There is no requirement for the independent sector to have a freedom to speak up guardian, but the service ensured that staff had an opportunity to speak up about any concerns at the team meeting or privately with any of the senior management team.

The service valued diversity in their workforce. Staff work towards an inclusive and fair culture by improving equality and equity for people who work for them. We reviewed the hospitals equality, diversity and inclusion policy. We found this to be reviewed regularly and in line with legislation. Staff we spoke with were able to discuss how an individual’s personal needs would be met within the hospital. The service offered translation services to those patients who required this. There was some disabled access to the areas where patients would be treated.

The service had clear responsibilities, roles, systems of accountability and good governance. Staff used these to manage and deliver high-quality, sustainable care, treatment and support. Staff always acted on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, and shared this securely with others when appropriate. There were clear flows of information up and down the organisation through the appropriate governance channels. The team at the hospital collected data for audits of the service. These were then discussed and compared with the sister site and where a trend identified, either across sites or at individual locations actions were taken and lessons shared across sites. An example of this is the discussion following the noting of increased infection rates for one surgeon and the arranging of further training for nursing staff. Improvements were also driven from feedback from patients an example of which was the move to a different garment provider.

The service understood their duty to collaborate and work in partnership, so services work seamlessly for people. Medical staff shared information with partners such as general practitioners to collaborate to drive improvements for the patients. This included when they identified areas where patients required further treatment. Patients were referred to the hospital through several routes including clinics that the provider had in other parts of the country. Information about the patient was held securely on shared systems in order that each unit was fully aware of individual needs.

The service had a strong focus on continuous learning, innovation and improvement across the organisation. Staff were actively encouraged to highlight potential changes to improve the patient experience. This included responding to patient feedback and the use of audits to drive improvements in service quality and experience. An example of this is the timely access to antibiotics for patients. The service has a protocol whereby staff can virtually discuss potential or actual infections with the operating surgeon who can request that the onsite consultant prescribe antibiotics for the patient. Staff always encouraged creative ways of delivering equality of experience, outcome and quality of life for people. The manager did this by asking staff to put themselves in the position of the patient to experience the service. Staff actively contributed to safe practice through participation in staff meetings and being able to raise suggestions for improvement.