Enter and View Report: Ward 16, University Hopsital North Durham

Report - 20 January 2019

Our report looks at the findings from when our authorised representatives visited Ward 16 at University Hospital North Durham.

Two of our Authorised Representatives carried out 14 individual conversations with patients and staff, using a set of appreciative questions to give people the opportunity to describe good practice they had experienced or seen. 0 surveys were completed prior to the visit.

A representative observed activity and spoke to people during our 3 hour visit, to collect their own independent impressions of the ward and its services, which they recorded during and after the visit.

Recommendations

One of the most conveyed messages from the patients/families on the day, was that they felt looked after and taken care of. They felt that this was the case right through their journey of pre-care, surgical intervention and after care. They suggested that they were clearly here on this ward for surgery which was needed to improve a health issue, and that their main priority was for their surgery to be done and result in them being well again but as part of this, they pointed out that they felt listened to and consulted about their treatment and surgery. Clearly important to patients because of the high response about this
Many people suggested that they were happy with the staff on the ward. They spoke of staff having a good, and caring attitude towards them. Patients indicated that where student nurses were being used, that this worked very well and benefited the service, made their stay more comfortable. Staff behaviours and culture is clearly to be celebrated and retained here
Patients suggested that there was little time for social interaction between staff and the patients as time was taken up dealing with medical care issues, so indicated how much better it would be if staff could ‘check in’ with them more frequently, where this was possible. Opportunities for patients to speak to staff informally- to explore options for this further would be welcomed
The ward and its environment was clean, tidy and all areas well stocked. Hygiene and sanitisation was well managed and routinely being carried out. There were several comments about the lack of television or radios on the ward, which patients clearly thought would improve their stay
There were concerns about getting rest on the ward, patients talked about difficulty in getting to sleep and also being moved around or being asked to fill forms in at unusually late, or early times of the day or night. Patients spoke about hearing nurses chatting and they wondered whether having doors installed (where the area was open) might overcome this issue. Whilst Patients clearly had an understanding of how difficult it must be to manage the ward, where any improvement for this issue could be made, this would be welcomed
We were told that patients were attended to in good time and were happy with staff response times. We noticed posters giving information on issues such as ‘number of falls’ and ‘MRSA’, displayed on the ward which was informative. Patients told us that the food on offer was good and appropriate, especially where people had limitations after surgery, they felt that there was a good choice which met their individual needs. In a busy surgical ward managing staff time and availability is very important and this ward is doing this well. This should be promoted
We felt it important to note there was a clear emphasis on the ward being a surgical ward. This ward is clearly dealing with patients having required surgeries and the ward is dealing with lots of surgeries at any one time. There is an acknowledgement, therefore, that much of the available time – for staff as well as patients – is taken up in dealing with surgeons and consultants- which is very relevant/different to other wards