Publish date: 21 June 2023
Northumbria Healthcare's hospitals rated highly for food and cleanliness
Patients have rated Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust among the best acute hospital trusts in the country for food and cleanliness.
The trust, which runs hospitals in Northumberland and North Tyneside, is celebrating its success in the national Patient-Led Assessments of the Care Environment (PLACE) report.
The trust scored second highest nationally in the food category for large acute trust and second highest nationally in cleanliness. It also ranked second of all acute trusts nationally for dementia, dignity and well-being.
These assessments were undertaken between September and December 2022.
They focus on how the hospital environment supports service provision and patient care, looking at core aspects such as cleanliness, food and maintenance, as well as the extent to which the environment supports privacy and dignity of dementia and disability compliance.
Chief executive, Sir James Mackey said: “We pride ourselves on our commitment to providing outstanding patient care and we know how hard our staff work to ensure that patients get the service they deserve. As well as the treatment they receive we know things like cleanliness, good food and the overall patient environment are all really important in offering the best possible experience for people while they are with us.
“That’s why it’s so pleasing to see our hospitals being recognised in this way and these results reflect the commitment of our staff to ensure patient experience remains at the core of all we do. It is reassuring to see that, in spite of pressures faced, our staff have continued to focus on the needs of patients and delivered excellence standards of care.”
Damon Kent, managing director of Northumbria Healthcare Facilities Management, the trust’s estates subsidiary, added: “I’m thrilled that the hard work of our domestics, porters and catering teams has been recognised through these excellence scores. This demonstrates just how dedicated we are to providing the best care for our patients.”
The trust also has an extensive patient experience programme, which is recognised as one of the most wide-ranging in the NHS. The process involved feedback being collected by Patient Perspective – an independent company approved by the CQC – to gain authentic and reflected insights, which are then analysed and acted on.
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