Publish date: 30 November 2020
Health Trust rated number one in the country for providing patients with emotional support
A North East Health Trust has been rated number one in the country for the emotional support it provides to its patients.
Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust received the rating from the Patient Experience Platform (PEP), an organisation that analyses a wide range of data to provide insights based on listening to the patient’s voice.
Twice rated outstanding by the CQC, Northumbria Healthcare is renowned for being one of the best trusts in the country. Multi-award winning for creating excellent patient experience and safety, the trust continually reviews the way it delivers care using insights from patient experience. Taking feedback through surveys which are shared with business units who can then implement any changes that are needed.
In addition to all of this, the trust was also rated the best place to work in the NHS in the most recent national staff survey – with 90% of staff believing that the top priority of the trust was high quality patient care and 95% of staff believing their role makes a positive difference for patients – that too the highest score in the NHS.
Annie Laverty, Chief Experience Officer at Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust explained: “As a trust, we understand the inextricable link between staff and patient experience and have worked hard in recent years to develop a truly integrated approach to improving both, in real time. We’re continuously focused on where we can further improve our care and have relied on great partnerships outside the trust to help us do this.”
The data shows a clear link between well engaged staff who can see the difference they make, and patients who feel emotionally supported. The trust-wide workforce is signed up to its core values, which include putting patients first and showing compassion, empathy and respect at all times.
Following a stay at the hospital, a patient fed back the following: “All the staff here are absolutely wonderful, I couldn’t fault them even if I tried my hardest to. The staff go up and beyond their duty and make me feel at ease at times when I feel embarrassed. The attitude they have makes me feel special and I can’t thank the staff enough. I am always asked if I’m in pain, the doctors have impressed me with how approachable they are and tell you everything that is happening or is going to happen.”
This trust-wide approach is why the healthcare provider has achieved so much throughout the global pandemic so far. The commitment of staff to do the very best for patients has seen the trust continue to provide cancer services, maintain a home birth service and allow birthing partners to share the labour experience when other trusts couldn’t. Just a few examples of how the healthcare provider has truly gone above and beyond, to help support patients through times of uncertainty.
The PEP aims to transform healthcare by analysing real time, real world feedback. It automatically identifies and gathers millions of items of publicly-available feedback from a variety of online platforms including social media. PEP’s custom algorithms categorise and score the feedback providing a proven, accurate and unbiased summary of what patients really think.