- NHS hospital
The Queen Elizabeth Hospital
Assessment report published 27 August 2026
Contents
Ratings - Urgent and emergency services
Our view of the service
On 28 and 29 April 2026 we carried out an assessment of urgent and emergency care. This was an unannounced responsive assessment due to the aged rating and concerns around emerging risk to patients.
We inspected all 34 quality statements across the key questions of safe, effective, caring, responsive and well led. During this assessment we spoke to 20 members of staff and 15 patients and their relatives.
The emergency department consisted of an adult emergency department with majors and minors cubicles, a paediatric emergency department, a resuscitation room, ambulatory emergency care, Same Day Emergency Care (S:DEC) and Frailty Same Day Emergency Care ward (FS:DEC).
During this assessment we found breaches in regulations relating to safe care and treatment and dignity and respect, a warning notice was served.
During this assessment we found staff were not monitoring patients’ risk of deterioration in a timely and consistent way. Privacy and dignity were not always maintained within the department. Staff were not fully compliant with their mandatory training including safeguarding training for adults and children. Equipment was not always serviced; we could not be sure that it was fit for purpose. We found concerns around the storage and monitoring of medicines within the department. We were not assured the department were fully compliant with infection prevention standards.
The department was not meeting its 15-minute triage target and had failed to meet it for a considerable amount of time. This was an area for improvement and a condition put upon the trust following an assessment in 2022.
Patients had long waits to be seen within the department and there were capacity and flow concerns. Long waits to see specialty teams had a detrimental effect on patients’ experience and outcomes
We observed good patient and staff interaction, and patients were treated with kindness and respect. We also observed good professional interactions between staff.
In instances where CQC has 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.
People's experience of this service
Patients and their families/carers were positive and complimentary of the service. They told us although the department was busy and they were waiting a long time, staff treated them with kindness, respect and dignity. Staff took time to talk and answer questions and they did not feel rushed. They felt cared for and supported.
Patients had access to food and drinks. We observed positive and respectful patient staff interactions. However, patients and their families told us that communication around waiting times could be better. This was identified as an area of improvement following the recent patient survey.