Nuffield Health Cambridge Hospital becomes the first independent health care acute hospital to receive outstanding rating from the Care Quality Commission

It is the first time the independent regulator of health and social care in England for NHS and independently run facilities has given an ‘Outstanding’ overall rating to an independent health care acute hospital.

The CQC monitors, inspects and regulates services to ensure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety in five key areas: safety, effectiveness, patient care, responsiveness and leadership. The published report highlighted a number of outstanding practices at the Nuffield Health Cambridge Hospital including:

· Patient care was at the heart of the service and the inspectors saw several areas of outstanding practice. This included the emphasis on supporting people emotionally and socially with the on-site Maggie’s Wallace charity. The feedback received from people using the service was overwhelmingly positive with people describing the care they had received as, “amazing” and “first class”

· The hospital provides an outstanding cancer rehabilitation programme. Patients are offered a 12-week programme as part of their treatment with the local Nuffield Health Fitness & Wellbeing Gym, which is supported by fitness instructors who have received specialist oncology training. The purpose of the programme is to improve quality of life following cancer treatment by improving physical function and psychological and social wellbeing

· Children and their families reported that staff members are kind and compassionate. Staff consistently included their patients and families in the care delivery and promoted their dignity. Young children have the option of driving a small electric car to theatre to reduce anxiety levels

· The hospital has a clear vision and staff members are aware of this. The service was supported by a clear governance structure and an active medical advisory committee, which encourages learning and improvement

· The leadership team locally as well as the senior management team are outstanding and demonstrate real passionate and committed leadership to delivering their service

Maxine Estop, Nuffield Health Cambridge Hospital Director comments: “This is the highest possible rating we could have achieved and I am incredibly proud of the whole team for the outstanding care we have been able to provide our patients since we opened last year. This is a true testament to the dedication and commitment of our Matron, nurses, consultants and all the staff at our hospital. We are also particularly proud of the support we offer cancer patients through the Maggie’s Wallace charity onsite at the hospital.”

The £30 million hospital on Trumpington Road, opened to patients in July 2015, replacing the original Evelyn Hospital buildings which dated back to 1921. HRH The Duke of Gloucester officially opened the hospital, which features state-of-the-art operating theatres and clinical facilities offering services such as orthopaedics, oncology, general surgery, urology, audiology, Ear Nose & Throat procedures and specialist paediatric services. These services are also backed by the latest diagnostic imaging facilities including on-site MRI and CT scanning.

For further information on Nuffield Health Cambridge Hospital visit https://www.nuffieldhealth.com/hospitals/cambridge or call 01223 859384.

Last updated Thursday 10 November 2016

First published on Thursday 10 November 2016