East Lancs hospitals get excellent ratings (From Lancashire Telegraph)

East Lancs hospitals get excellent ratings

1:58pm Friday 30th July 2010 in

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THE two community hospitals run by NHS East Lancashire have achieved five-star ratings in an annual patient safety assessment.

The Patient Environment Action Team (PEAT) assessment looked at three areas of patient safety – the hospital environment, the quality of the food, and privacy and dignity.

Accrington Victoria Community Hospital achieved an ‘excellent’ rating, the best score possible, in all three categories - one of only 40 out of 1,246 hospitals to do so.

Clitheroe Community Hospital scored a top rating of 'excellent' for the quality of its food and privacy and dignity, and a 'good' grade for the environment.

The PEAT programme assesses all hospitals and inpatient units with 10 or more beds.

The inspection team consists of doctors, nurses, matrons, catering and domestic service managers, as well as patients, their representatives and the public, who provide a grade ranging from excellent to unacceptable.

Across England 87 per cent of NHS hospitals were rated ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ for their environment and 96 per cent ‘excellent’ or ‘good’ for the quality, choice and availability of food for patients.

Mark Hindle, NHS East Lancashire managing director of provider services, said it was 'an outstanding achievement' for all staff involved.