This meeting, on 11th May 2011, was the Trust’s second Board Meeting in public. The Trust covers a very wide area, so large parts of the meeting were not of direct relevance to Hillingdon residents.
Finances
At 31st March finances were on budget as planned
Staff Survey
The results were considered disappointing. Main concerns were staff training and hand washing – similar findings to a year ago. The Chief Executive, Claire Murdoch, wants immediate improvements and explanations for why these problems persist.
Concern was also raised about the number of nursing post vacancies, but assurances were given that no compromise on staff quality will be made in filling these positions.
Mystery Shopper Feedback
Only “Out of Hours Services” and “Reception Areas” were involved in these exercises but Hillingdon services were not well represented, possibly because the mystery shoppers did not want to travel so far. Without a breakdown into areas, it is difficult to know whether the exercise has any local relevance, particularly as the shoppers reported wide variance in experiences, ranging from very positive to very disappointed. Also on duplicate visits they noted that experiences differed due to the individuals encountered.
An extension of the project will include visits to hospitals to ask about visitors’ experiences. This is prompted by carers’ concerns that they do not receive a welcome when visiting inpatients and they are often not provided with sufficient information.
Infection control
Staff training is on-going. New equipment is being used eg temporary paper curtains while material curtains are being cleaned. There was a confirmed outbreak of norovirus in Northwick Park Hospital in January, lasting 7 days. Closed units are not able to re-open to admissions until all the patients have been symptom free for at least 48 hours and a deep clean of the whole ward has been completed.
Last updated 29th June 2011
