Marie Curie Hospice and Community Services North West and Cumbria Region

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• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

We assessed 3 quality statements from this key question. We have combined the scores for this area with scores based on the rating from the last inspection, which was good. Our rating for this key question remains good. Staff treated patients and relatives with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, and took account of their individual needs. There was a strong, visible person-centred culture that was promoted by service leaders. There was a culture embedded across the hospice that encompassed compassion, privacy, dignity and delivering individual needs to palliative and end of life care patients.

This service scored 75 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Patient we spoke with spoke highly of the care and treatment they had received at the hospice. No negative comments were received.

Staff and leaders told us that dignity and patient experience were important to them, and things had been implemented to improve patient experience. Leaders told us they were assured that patients receive kind, compassionate and dignified care by having regular department walk arounds. The team work closely with the pain team. Staff told us how they always maintained patient confidentiality.

No concerns were raised from partner organisations in relation to the care patients received at the hospice.

All the staff we spoke with were caring and compassionate and were committed to providing the best patient care possible. During the onsite visit we observed staff across the inpatient ward and saw patients were consistently treated with dignity, compassion, and empathy. Staff were discreet and responsive when caring for patients. Staff took time to interact with patients and those close to them in a respectful and considerate way. Staff followed policy to keep patient care and treatment confidential. Staff understood and respected the personal, cultural, social, and religious needs of patients and how they may relate to care needs. Staff understood and respected the individual needs of each patient and showed understanding and a non-judgmental attitude when caring for or discussing patients with mental health needs.

Patients told us that staff explained their care and treatment options in a way they could understand, and that staff knew and understood them, their needs and requirements. Friends and family test results stated that “Staff were very polite, helpful, compassionate, professional, knowledgeable and caring.” One patient wrote that “nothing was too much for the staff and they were very caring.”

There was a strong culture embedded across the hospice that encompassed compassion, privacy, dignity and delivering to individual needs of palliative and end of life care patients. All the staff we spoke with were caring and compassionate and were committed to providing the best patient care possible.

Staff understood and respected the individual needs of each patient and had an understanding and a non-judgmental attitude when caring for or discussing patients with mental health needs. We saw that patients were treated with compassion and empathy. We observed posters around the location / department on the behavioural standards expected in the hospice.

Staff followed policy to keep patient care and treatment confidential. Staff understood and respected the personal, cultural, social, and religious needs of patients and how they may relate to care needs.

We did not look at Independence, choice and control during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

Patients told us that staff explained their care and treatment options in a way they could understand. Patients felt staff knew and understood them and their needs and requirements. Patients told us they believed staff responded to their needs quickly and efficiently, especially if they were in pain, discomfort, or distress.

Staff completed risk assessments for each patient on admission to the ward using a recognised tool, and reviewed this regularly, including after any incident. Patient records included risk assessments such as for pressure ulcers, nutritional needs, risk of falls, moving and handling and infection control risks and these were reviewed and updated periodically on a weekly basis or sooner if there had been any change to the patient’s condition.

Staff followed up-to-date policies to plan and deliver care according to best practice and national guidance. Staff used a nationally recognised tool to identify deteriorating patients and escalated them appropriately. Staff knew about and dealt with any specific risk issues.

We did not look at Workforce wellbeing and enablement during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.