West Sussex hospitals see ratings lowered after inspections

The inspections were carried out in hospitals in Brighton, Worthing, Haywards Heath and Chichester

Two West Sussex hospitals have had their ratings lowered following a series of inspections.

"Significant improvements" are needed in leadership at University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) found.

A CQC spokesperson said they found a "wide disconnect in the relationship between staff and senior leaders".

A trust spokesperson said it "accepted the challenge" and was "working hard" to put things right.

Overall ratings were dropped at Worthing Hospital and St Richard's Hospital in Chichester.

The unannounced inspections in August were to check on the programme of improvement work carried out after previous reports.

Bullying and low morale

The inspections were carried out on surgical services at the Princess Royal Hospital, Haywards Heath, St Richard's Hospital, Chichester, Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, and Worthing Hospital.

Inspectors also looked at medical care, including older people's care.

The reports highlighted that there were "still reports of bullying and low staff morale as a result of not feeling listened to".

Neil Cox, CQC deputy director of operations in the south, said: "These issues were clearly having a knock-on effect on the quality of care being delivered to people using services.

"Staff told us even though they were reporting issues that needed resolving that weren't always taken forward by managers."

Across surgery at more than one service inspectors found there were not always enough staff to care for people and keep them safe and that staff did not always manage medicines well.

Two of the four hospitals inspected had their overall ratings drop.

• Worthing dropped from outstanding to requires improvement

• Royal Sussex County has risen from inadequate to requires improvement

• Princess Royal was re-rated as requires improvement

• St Richard's dropped from outstanding to requires improvement

Overall, the trust remains rated as requires improvement.

Dr George Findlay, chief executive of University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust, said: "The CQC inspection team found frontline teams giving good patient care, treating patients with kindness and respect, and working well together.

"Those are fundamental strengths, and it is to their enormous credit that they are giving such good care in such difficult circumstances.

"But the CQC also found too many things that we need to do better - from more consistent record-keeping to training, to managing pressures on overstretched staff, improving our culture, and in some of our hospitals, making colleagues feel more confident to speak up."

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