Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust Inspected

Written by Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust

A new report published on 12th September rates Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust as outstanding overall, following an official inspection by independent regulators, the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The CQC carried out its latest inspection in May 2019 and has just announced the results of that inspection in a report and press release posted online at http://www.cqc.org.uk/. The report found nothing that the trust should improve.

Tracy Allen, chief executive of Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I am so proud of everyone who works here for helping us to achieve this fantastic result. It just shows the commitment, energy and effort that all our staff put into their roles every day in ensuring we do the best we can for our patients and for each other.

“I feel privileged to work with such a great team. We will not rest on our laurels – part of what makes me so proud of our staff is the way everyone is always looking for new and better ways of working and striving to make continual improvements in the interests of good patient care. To have this recognised in such an official way with our new CQC outstanding rating is something we can all celebrate. Thank you everyone.”

Prem Singh, chairman of Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust, said: “This is a tremendous team effort which reflects the values, care and compassion which goes into providing the highest possible person-centred care at every level in this organisation. There has never been a greater challenge of demand outstripping resources and our staff are truly inspirational in working collectively to serve our communities, even when changes affect them personally. It is a privilege and an honour to be part of this outstanding organisation and I would like to add my thanks and congratulations to everyone.”

Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust is one of the largest providers of specialist community health services in the country, providing in the region of 4,000 patient contacts every day and serving a population of over one million people in Derbyshire and Derby.

It employs around 4,300 staff, caring for patients in 11 community hospitals and more than 30 health centres, as well as in clinics, GP practices, schools, care homes, and increasingly in people’s own homes. More details about services provided are online: www.dchs.nhs.uk
It takes the Derbyshire community trust’s rating from a previous good rating, achieved after an inspection in 2016, to the highest outstanding rating overall.

In addition to being rated outstanding overall, Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust was rated outstanding for caring and for being well-led and rated good for providing care which is safe, effective and responsive.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is an independent regulator with a remit to register health and adult social care service providers in England and to inspect whether or not standards are being met.

In summarising the recent inspection of Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust, the Care Quality Commission’s chief inspector of hospitals, Professor Ted Baker, said: “We were impressed by the high-quality care and treatment offered by Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust.

“Staff were caring, compassionate and dedicated to their roles. They treated patients with kindness, dignity and respect – particularly when patients felt distressed or were experiencing emotional difficulties.

“Leaders engaged thoroughly with patients and staff. They used feedback to shape the future of the trust, and they proactively learned from things that had gone wrong. Managers communicated effectively and set the right priorities, helping to build a positive culture and sense of common purpose. Without exception, staff spoke very highly of the organisation as an employer. All this had a positive impact on patient care.

“The trust’s community sexual health services respected people’s privacy while supporting their individual needs. This service worked particularly successfully to support vulnerable people, including those who had been sexually assaulted or abused. Staff were resourced with the right training and information, and they worked collaboratively with other services to get the best possible outcomes for people.

“An outstanding rating is the result of a tremendous amount of hard work and commitment; I congratulate everyone involved. We continue to monitor the trust and we will return to carry out further inspections to check on progress with improvements.”

Inspectors witnessed several areas of outstanding practice across the trust, including:
• Staff empowered patients to make decisions about their care
• Initiatives improved outcomes for people receiving wound care in the community
• A reverse-mentoring initiative, which paired leaders with junior staff who identified with protected characteristics, gave insight into working life at the trust and challenged any unconscious bias
• Effective working with other healthcare providers promoted early identification of sepsis
• Support from leaders fostered a positive working environment, particularly around ensuring staff were not pressured to work outside their contracted hours.