I was invited to join Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt when he made a low key visit to meet staff at Worthing Hospital last Thursday. He met around clinical 60 staff at the Education Centre including Chief Executive Marianne Griffith and the Trust’s Clinical Director Dr George Findlay. Jeremy was there specifically to talk about his campaign to make the NHS the safest health service in the world and yet again he praised the Western Sussex Hospital Trust as one of the best he has come across for its learning culture and the impressive safety improvements that had resulted. Though I may be biased he gave an impressive talk without notes for almost an hour and took questions from all comers. He brought with him pilot Martin Bromley whose wife had tragically died after an elective surgical procedure and he has now set up a charity to promote a better learning culture in the NHS and shift the NHS away from a culture of blame to become more of a learning organisation not afraid to confront difficult issues openly.
Jeremy Hunt has specifically referenced the incredible achievements at Worthing Hospital numerous times including in his Party Conference speech last October and he again paid tribute to the great job that staff at Worthing are doing. The figures speak for themselves:
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Falls by patients at Worthing have been reduced by 33% since 2015
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Delayed discharges have been reduced to 10 bed days lost as a result recently from 80 last year-an incredible achievement given the age profile of patients.
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A record number of 5331 babies born across the 2 hospital sites; 136,804 people seen in A&E; 135792 in-patients treated; 585846 outpatients treated; 389388 scans and x-rays taken place over the last year.
Worthing is indeed a very busy hospital and despite all the challenges we face continues to do an outstanding jo as one of the now 15 acute hospitals rated ‘outstanding’ across England. It is great that the Secretary of State has recognise that and I am grateful that he came personally to pass on his thanks again. Well done to all the staff at Worthing – we are really lucky to have such a fantastic hospital in your town.