{"id":273301,"date":"2025-07-18T23:47:49","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T23:47:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/273301\/"},"modified":"2025-07-18T23:47:49","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T23:47:49","slug":"mayday-report-shows-croydon-hospital-requires-improvement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/273301\/","title":{"rendered":"Mayday! Report shows Croydon hospital requires improvement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Croydon\u2019s largest NHS hospital has for the second time in less than three years been given a \u201crequires improvement\u201d rating by inspectors from the Care Quality Commission.<\/p>\n

In the report, the inspectors found that some patients had to wait more than 60 hours \u2013 two-and-a-half days \u2013 to get transferred to a bed on a ward.<\/p>\n

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Long waits:<\/strong> it can take up to 60 hours to find a ward bed for patients from Croydon\u2019s A&E, according to inspectors<\/p>\n

The CQC says that the average wait for a bed at Mayday was 13 hours \u2013 seven hours longer than the national average.<\/p>\n

In a statement issued ahead of the publication of the inspectors\u2019 report, the CQC described a hospital that is badly overcrowded, with poor systems in place for the safe discharge of some patients.<\/p>\n

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\u201cStaff had to care for many people in areas such as corridors\u2026 these spaces gave people little privacy and dignity and lacked facilities\u2026 These spaces also lacked call bells or emergency alarms\u2026 and some busy corridors made it hard for staff to reach vital areas like the resuscitation room.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cWhile it hadn\u2019t done so yet, this could delay lifesaving care.\u201d<\/p>\n

The inspection at Croydon University Hospital in Thornton Heath took place in April, when the CQC looked at medical care (including older people\u2019s care) and urgent and emergency services. It was the first such inspection at Mayday since December 2022.<\/p>\n

\u201cCQC carried out an inspection of these two services, in part to follow up on improvements CQC told the trust to make at their previous inspection and as part of our ongoing assessment of the services provided,\u201d the CQC explained in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cCQC has rated how safe, effective and responsive medical care services are as \u2018requires improvement\u2019 again,\u201d they said. Ratings for caring and well-led have gone from \u201crequires improvement\u201d to \u201cgood\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cCQC has rated the trust\u2019s urgent and emergency service ratings for safe, caring, responsive and well-led as \u2018requires improvement\u2019 again,\u201d they say.<\/p>\n

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Nurses\u2019 protest:<\/strong> insiders at Croydon University Hospital complain that the Trust is closing wards and refusing to offer jobs to this year\u2019s cadre of student nurses<\/p>\n

The hospital\u2019s emergency services have been upgraded from \u201crequires improvement\u201d to \u201cgood\u201d for effectiveness.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe overall rating of Croydon University Hospital remains requires improvement,\u201d the CQC says.<\/p>\n

Croydon University Hospital is run by Croydon Health Services NHS Trust.<\/p>\n

Antoinette Smith, CQC deputy director of operations for London, said: \u201cWhen we inspected Croydon University Hospital, we found the emergency department was still very crowded, because of severe challenges admitting or discharging people from the medical wards, although staff were working extremely hard to meet people\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n

\u201cLeaders understood the challenges they faced and were working on improvements, but these needed more time.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPeople had long waits in the emergency department, waiting an average of over 13 hours in December 2024 for a bed on the wards, seven hours longer than the national average. Some people in the emergency department had to wait over 60 hours.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cStaff had to care for many people in areas such as corridors and an internal clinical waiting area. While people said staff were kind, these spaces gave people little privacy and dignity and lacked facilities such as adequate toilets.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese spaces also lacked call bells or emergency alarms, though the trust was acting to manage this risk, and some busy corridors made it hard for staff to reach vital areas like the resuscitation room.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile it hadn\u2019t done so yet, this could delay lifesaving care.<\/p>\n

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Amber warnings:<\/strong> an extract from the CQC inspection report, showing areas requiring improvement at Mayday Hospital<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile emergency department waiting times are a national issue, individual hospitals must do everything possible to maintain people\u2019s safety and dignity while working to reduce waits.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany people on the medical wards were waiting a long time to be discharged, because of delays in allocation of transport to get people home or pressures on the local health system, such as delayed care packages. Staff didn\u2019t always plan from the start how people would be safely discharged after their treatment.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe were reassured to see leaders had begun making improvements. The trust had also improved the staff culture since our last inspection, although this work was ongoing in some teams. As a result, most staff were working well together to meet people\u2019s needs as well as they could.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve shared our findings with the trust so they know where there\u2019s good practice to build on and where improvements must still be made. We\u2019ll continue to monitor these services closely to ensure people receive safe care while these improvements are ongoing.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the CQC, inspectors found:<\/p>\n