Calls for investment after Weston General Hospital rated inadequate

Mike Bell said he was particularly concerned that hospital trust leaders were not on top of some major concerns, including the supervision of junior doctors, and that they lacked awareness of medical care.

The deputy leader of North Somerset Council said it would continue to press for stronger action to address the issues raised by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Cllr Bell, the council's executive member for health, said Weston General had done an amazing job supporting local residents during the Covid pandemic and the report was disappointing.

He added: “Now must surely be the time for more resources and investment to be delivered to Weston General Hospital to enable staff and management alike to turn the page and implement the improvements I know they want to see.”

The inspectors said in a report published last week following an unannounced visit in June: “We were significantly concerned about the safe care and treatment of patients receiving medical care at Weston General Hospital and imposed urgent conditions upon the trust’s registration.

“Within these urgent conditions, the trust was required to take urgent action to protect patients who will or may be exposed to risk of harm.

"Whilst the trust has taken immediate steps to address our concerns, we have yet to be fully assured that the actions taken will be sufficient and sustainable to ensure safe service provision.”

The CQC report emphasised the difficulty recruiting at Weston General – job vacancies for doctors sometimes receive no applicants at all, at all levels – and said the inadequate medical cover was causing anxiety that spilled over into Bristol.

The trust – which was rated good overall – said it was not alone in facing challenges around staffing and by the end of December an additional 320 nurses will have joined by the end of March.

Dr Nigel Acheson. (Image: CQC)

Dr Nigel Acheson, the CQC’s deputy chief inspector of hospitals, said: “This is the first inspection to rate how well-led the newly formed University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust is, following the merger of two trusts in 2020.

“Our inspectors found a strong patient-centred culture with staff committed to keeping patients safe. Patients and relatives spoke highly of staff and the way in which they were informed of their treatment plans, and how these would affect them.

“However, as with all mergers, there are generally areas which a trust will need to address and we were disappointed to find a lack of awareness amongst the leadership team regarding medical care at Western General Hospital.

"“It was also concerning that the team was not on top of some major concerns, including the supervision of junior doctors at Weston General Hospital which had triggered quality intervention visits from Health Education England and the General Medical Council."

Robert Woolley, the trust’s chief executive, said: “We took immediate action and provided regulatory assurance when the CQC raised concerns at the time of the inspection back in June in relation to staffing, patient risk assessment and use of escalation areas on our Weston site.

"We have enhanced leadership in Weston with the appointments earlier this year of a managing director, medical director, and deputy chief nurse, to provide executive level support to the hospital.

“We are not alone in the challenges we face around staffing. However, we have been making progress in recruitment and this continues to be a priority.

“In addition, we are also working with our system partners to deliver a plan which reaffirms Weston General Hospital as a dynamic hospital at the heart of the local community providing high-quality care to the population it serves.

“We know there are areas we need to address, and we know what we need to do. We have already tackled some of the issues outlined in the CQC report and we are making progress in others as outlined above and a full action plan will be developed."