Published at 11:04, Thursday, 02 June 2011

A PATIENT survey at community hospitals across Cumbria has given top marks for care, cleanliness, and catering.

More than half the patients rated their care as excellent and a further 42 per cent as very good, according to the survey carried out by the not-for-profit Picker Institute Europe.

Half of the people who took part in the survey were aged 76-85 years old and 97 per cent said they felt they were always treated with respect and dignity by hospital staff.

The study involved face-to-face interviews with 60 per cent of the inpatients at the 12 community hospitals across Cumbria. And the patient scores were significantly above the national average in several key areas, say health bosses.

All the patients involved in the survey said the hospital where they were treated had good standards of cleanliness and 88 per cent rated their meals as “very good” or “good” and only three per cent rating it as “poor”.

Patients commented on the “excellent” care given by both nurses and doctors. When asked about help eating or drinking, 97 per cent of those who required assistance said there had always been someone on hand to help.

The majority of patients, (97 per cent) said they felt staff always treated them with dignity and respect and 94 per cent said they have always been given enough privacy when discussing condition and treatment.

There were higher than average levels of confidence in the nurses and doctors, with 95 per cent saying they always had confidence in the nurses and 93 per cent in the doctors. And 74 per cent said there was always or nearly always enough nurses on duty to help care for them during their stay.

Published by http://www.whitehavennews.co.uk