Ratings success for Airedale Hospital

They were responding to the first results from the NHS Friends and Family Test, which covers England’s NHS acute hospital inpatient and A&E departments.

Every inpatient ward and A&E department is given a monthly score based on the responses to the question: ‘How likely are you to recommend our ward/A&E department to friends and family if they needed similar care or treatment?’ Each trust achieves a score based on the satisfaction levels of patients, ranging from the most negative rating of -100 to a potential top score of +100. Airedale received 74 for its inpatients wards in June of this year and 56 for its A&E during the same month.

An Airedale spokesman said: “Our scores compare favourably with the national scores for England for June 2013, which are 71 for inpatients wards and 54 for A&E.

“Patients taking part in the survey are able to make comments in addition to the six-point response scale, which determines the NHS trust score. For us, the vast majority of these have been positive.

“There have been a small number of comments highlighting where things could be improved, particularly relating to how long people are waiting to go home. We’ve therefore organised a workshop of patient representatives and staff to find ways to ensure patients are discharged earlier in the day.”

Rob Dearden, director of nursing at Airedale, said: “The real strength of the test is that it ensures the voices of patients and their families are heard, putting people at the centre of their local NHS and enabling them to help shape better services much faster than more traditional survey methods.

“Comments and scores are rapidly available to frontline staff, so practical action can be taken to address problems that concern patients, while positive comments are very important in maintaining the morale of hard-working staff.”

The test data for all England hospitals and A&E departments is published on the NHS Choices website.