Press release – issued 29 March 2023
2023/007

Patients give Herefordshire's hospitals the thumbs up  

Hospitals in Herefordshire have been given the thumbs up by volunteer patient assessors in the national Patient Led Assessment of the Care Environment (PLACE) results published on 23 March 2023.

The PLACE inspections involve patients or former patients who assess the care environment across six areas: cleanliness; food; privacy; dignity and wellbeing; the condition, appearance and maintenance of buildings; and the extent to which the environment is able to support the care of those with dementia or with a disability.

The unannounced assessments at Hereford County Hospital, Ross, Leominster and Bromyard Community Hospitals carried out last year, have revealed that the Trust is continuing to make improvements in a number of areas, with most areas showing an improvement following the previous assessments in 2019.

The Trust scored 97 per cent for cleanliness, more than 90 per cent for patient food, 96 per cent for condition, appearance and maintenance, 82 per cent for privacy, dignity and wellbeing, 85 per cent for how well the needs of patients with dementia and patients with a disability are met.

Lucy Flanagan, chief nursing officer at Wye Valley NHS Trust, said: “We are pleased with these results, which show we are heading in the right direction to continue to provide a high quality environment for our patients. The scores across our hospitals have improved in a number of areas since the previous PLACE assessments were carried out, with many areas scoring above the national average.

“These assessments are extremely valuable as they provide real feedback from patients and help us to identify where we can make further improvements to patient experience.

"However, we are not complacent and we know that further improvements are required and action plans are in place to address these." 

Ends 

Notes to Editors WVT:

• Wye Valley NHS Trust is a provider of health services across Herefordshire and beyond. The Trust exists to improve the wellbeing, independence and health of the people we serve.
• By working closely with our partners, we can make good our promise to deliver a quality of care we would want for ourselves, our families and our friends.
• With an estimated annual turnover of around £295 million, we employ around 3,000 staff. We aim to build new relationships between our staff, patients, service users and their carers with the wider community. 

For further information please contact:

Fiona Gurney, communications officer, or John Burnett, Communication and Engagement Manager, Wye Valley NHS Trust: 01432 372928