Northern Lincolnshire hospitals to leave special measures

Goole and District Hospital was rated "good" by inspectors

A hospital trust which was criticised for its high death rates is to come out of special measures.

Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust was found to have made "real progress" after a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection.

Concerns were raised during last year's Keogh Review about inadequate staffing levels and poor care at the trust.

Chief executive Karen Jackson said the improvement was "testament to the sheer hard work of all our staff".

Northern Lincolnshire and Goole was one of 11 trusts placed in special measures in July 2013 after a government-commissioned review into higher-than-expected death rates.

The CQC inspected the trust's three main hospitals in April and May and rated two of them - Diana Princess of Wales and Scunthorpe General Hospital - as "requires improvement", while Goole and District Hospital was rated "good".

'Huge amount of changes'

Trust chairman Dr James Whittingham said: "I am delighted that the trust's achievements have led directly to the recommendation that special measures be lifted.

"A lot of work has gone into implementing the Keogh action plan, which involved making a huge amount of changes in a short space of time."

England's chief inspector of hospitals, Professor Sir Mike Richards, said: "The trust has made real progress to meet the requirements of the Keogh Review, with the way that it is led changing significantly.

"While there are signs this trust is improving, a number of these improvements are new and need time to become fully ingrained in the service. The trust still needs to take action to make sure that people using its services receive good quality treatment and care all the time."

Inspectors said improvements still needed to be made in 21 areas including staffing levels and the layout of Scunthorpe's accident and emergency department.