Annual check reveals hospital standards fall

Published on 25th October 2007 in News

Goole and Northern Lincolnshire Hospitals have scored 'fair' for the quality of service they provide and for the use of their resources in this years Healthcare Commission Annual Health Check.

The Health Care Commission is England's watchdog in healthcare, working to promote improvements in the quality of healthcare and public health.

The Trust score 'weak' for the 'new national target' section of the check, as it failed to achieve year on year reductions in MRSA levels. The Trust also failed on the target to reduce health inequalities by 2010, underachieving in substantially reducing mortality rates from heart disease, strokes and related diseases, as well as in suicide and undetermined injury.

The results of the Healthcare Commission's Annual Health Check did not come as a surprise to the Trust, who stated in their self-declaration that the MRSA rate was higher than the previous year.

Dr Liz Scott, medical director for the Trust, said: "While we have declared that we are compliant for 44 of the 45 standards we have this year been unable to reduce the number of MRSA bacteraemia within the Trust."

"While it is impossible to say why the number of cases rose, and some of these may well be community-acquired cases, the Trust's focus of attention is now on ensuring we do all we can to minimise the risk of any further increase in cases."

"It is pleasing to note that we fully met the core standards and national standards and were rated good for our use of resource.

"I am confident that, with the measures we have taken, we will see an improvement in our results next year."