Great Western Hospital Foundation Trust is to be inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the Chief Inspector wants to hear from patients and families of patients – learning their views and experiences of Great Western Hospital, Swindon, its four other hospitals and its community health services.
The week-long inspection starts on September 30. On Thursday, September 24 Healthwatch Wiltshire will be holding a ‘listening event’ at Marlborough Town Hall starting at 6.00pm.
During the inspection week, a CQC team will visit Great Western Hospital, Swindon, Chippenham Community Hospital, Savernake Hospital, Trowbridge Community Hospital, Warminster Community Hospital and the services provided in the community.
The Chief Inspector, Professor Sir Mike Richards, is leading large inspection teams including clinical and other experts, along with specialist inspectors and ‘experts by experience’, to inspect all of England’s acute hospitals.
In this area, the CQC is working closely with Healthwatch Swindon and Healthwatch Wiltshire to make sure the views of patients and the local community are properly heard.
Sir Mike said: “Our inspections are designed to provide people with a clear picture of the quality of the services in their local hospitals, exposing poor or mediocre care as well as highlighting the many hospitals providing good and excellent care.”
“We know there is too much variation in quality – these in-depth inspections allow us to get a much more detailed picture of care in hospitals and community services than ever before.”
“Of course we will be talking to doctors and nurses, managers and patients in Great Western Hospital. But it is vital that we also hear the views of the people who have experienced the care provided by the trust over the course of the last year or so, or anyone who wants to share information with us.”
The CQC will publish a full report of the inspectors’ findings later in the year. The trust will be given one of the following ratings: Outstanding, Good, Requiring improvement, Inadequate.
Those who cannot get to the Town Hall event can contact the CQC either by telephone (03000 616161), online at the CQC website, by email enquiries@cqc.org.uk
or by letter: CQC, Citygate, Gallowgate, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 4PA.
