- NHS hospital
Southend University Hospital
Report from 12 November 2024 assessment
Contents
Ratings - Urgent and emergency services
Our view of the service
On the 27th of November 2024 we carried out a responsive focused assessment of the paediatric emergency department (PED) at Southend University Hospital. The assessment was prompted in part by notifications of adverse incidents, which are subject to further investigation by CQC as to whether any regulatory action should be taken. As a result, this assessment did not examine the circumstances of the incidents. However, the information shared with CQC about the incidents indicated potential concerns about the quality and safety of the service. This assessment examined those concerns. We inspected 6 quality statements across the safe, responsive and well-led key questions. This assessment did not cover all parts of our assessment framework; therefore, we have only given scores for those areas which we have assessed. We will carry out future assessments to cover other parts of the Framework and will update our website with our findings. We found 2 breaches of the legal regulations in relation to safe care and treatment and governance. At our last inspection we rated this service requires improvement. At this inspection the rating has remained requires improvement because:
The management of risks to people across their care journey was not always effective. Staff told us that the high level of demand within the department and staffing shortages impacted on their ability to maintain oversight of the patients in the department and to manage risk effectively. There was limited evidence that the service actively sought out, listened to and responded to information about children and young people who were most likely to experience inequality in experience or outcomes. The service did not always have effective governance arrangements in place. Staff did not act on the best information about risk, performance and outcomes, or share this securely with others when appropriate.
In instances where CQC have decided to take civil or criminal enforcement action against a provider, we will publish this information on our website after any representations and/ or appeals have been concluded.
We have asked the provider for an action plan in response to concerns found at this assessment.
People's experience of this service
Children, young people and their families using the paediatric emergency department (PED) felt staff mostly treated them with warmth and kindness whilst providing care and treatment. The majority of families felt informed and included in discussions about children and young people’s care. The majority of families felt that staff had listened to them and that their concerns had been acknowledged by staff. They said they were not always seen quickly and could experience delays in care when the department was busy. Healthwatch had been contacted by people with concerns about how children with additional needs were not always receiving the necessary support and care.