St Andrew's Healthcare awarded 'good' CQC rating

St Andrew’s Healthcare in Essex has been rated as ‘Good’ following the latest inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in June - an improvement on the previous inspection in 2016.

The 28-page report, published today, details how the Charity’s Essex hospital provides specialist care for men and women with mental health issues.

Inspectors visited the hospital over three days and spent time speaking with staff, patients and carers about their experiences. They visited all wards, and reviewed the service against five domains: safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.

During their time at St Andrew’s, the Inspectors also considered the general environment and observed how our staff care for patients.

Dean Howells, Executive Director of Nursing and Operations, said: “This is a great achievement, and reflects the hard work of our staff who provide care for our patients. I would like to thank all our staff for their continued commitment.”

Many areas of good practice were highlighted in the report, published on the CQC website, including:

• Our work to reduce restrictive practice across all pathways of the hospital

• Staff members’ good use of de-escalation techniques

• Patients have good access to garden areas and fresh air

• Clean and well-maintained wards; on one ward, patients have been involved in designing artwork to reflect their therapy goals

• Patients have good access to physical healthcare

• Inspectors found thorough record keeping, especially with prescriptions and medical recommendations

• Clear procedures for visitors, including family visits for patients with children

• Staff were observed to be kind, treating their patients with dignity and respect

• Staff were open and transparent, and explained things to patients

• Staff felt there was a culture of team working and mutual support

Dean concluded: “St Andrew’s is committed to transforming lives, and one of our objectives is to achieve a CQC rating of Outstanding – for our all of our sites by 2020; this latest inspection demonstrates our commitment to working towards that goal.”

Click here to see a summary of the CQC's findings at St Andrew's Essex