CQC tells Harlow's Princess Alexandra Hospital to improve as staff say they're exhausted
Watch a report by Russell Hookey
Staff at an Essex hospital have told inspectors they are exhausted and have been reduced to tears while on shift.
The Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow has been told it must make urgent improvements following visits by the Care Quality Commission over the summer.
At one stage during their visit, inspectors were forced to step in to ensure two patients waiting in A&E were treated as their conditions deteriorated.
The watchdog found the hospital was failing to properly monitor patients and had no system in place to make sure those in most need were given priority.
That led the CQC to demand immediate action from bosses to address the problem, ahead of its report being published today. The trust must also report staffing numbers to the inspectorate each week.
Phillippa Styles, head of hospital inspection, said staff shortages in the emergency department - particularly nurses and healthcare assistants - added to the risk to patients.
"We saw similar concerns in maternity services with understaffing that had led to bed shortage and delays in women receiving care," she said.
"Despite these challenges, staff should be commended for how kind and caring we saw they were with all their patients."
The Royal College of Nursing said staff in Harlow were "working at the very limit" and would be disappointed to read the CQC's report.
"Every day and night, nursing staff work so hard to try and make a difference and in the majority of cases they do," said Tony Durcan, senior officer for Essex. "But they also struggle with the pressures of staffing shortages, increased demand and strains on capacity."
The inspection focused on the Princess Alexandra's urgent and emergency, maternity and medical services and also assessed the trust's leadership.
The overall rating of the hospital remains "requires improvement" while its emergency services were deemed inadequate. Those in charge were downgraded from "good" to "requires improvement".
The Princess Alexandra Hospital's chief executive Lane McCarthy said the trust had faced unprecedented demand during the Covid-19 pandemic and that his staff's response had been amazing.
“We know that we need to continue to improve all our services and that we are on an ongoing journey of improvement and have the commitment of our people to make it better," he said. "I am confident that we have the fantastic people we need to do this."
He added the hospital had already made changes in response to the CQC report.
Healthwatch Essex, an independent charity representing patients in the county, said it understood the last 18 months had been challenging for everyone in the NHS but added: "It is deeply worrying to hear of practices and processes which fail to keep people safe in any healthcare setting."