Medway Maritime Hospital

Medway NHS Foundation Trust has been a foundation trust since 1 April 2008. The trust employs 3,683 staff (budgeted establishment of 4,139 whole time equivalent (WTE) staff) and has 652 beds. The trust’s turnover is £282 million; it reported a deficit of £30.5 million in 2014/15.

Medway NHS Foundation Trust was placed into ‘special measures’ in July 2013 to improve and rectify failings in patient care and governance as identified in the review under Professor Sir Bruce Keogh.

At the time of this inspection the executive team comprised four permanent executive positions and three interim executives. The chairperson was appointed in September 2014 after having joined the trust as a non-executive director in January 2014. The Chief Executive had been in post since May 2015. The positions of the Finance Director and Chief Nurse were interim appointments; the Chief Nurse was due to leave the trust in October 2015. The Medical Director was absent at the time of our inspection; the duties of the Medical Directors office was being fulfilled by a deputy and associate medical directors. The Chief Operating Officer was a substantive employee but had tendered their resignation shortly prior to the inspection; they had been in post since November 2014. The trust had appointed a Chief Quality Officer who took up post in October 2014.

As of June 2015 the trust is being supported through a formal buddying arrangement with Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust (GSTT). The scope of the agreement is for GSTT to provide advice and support to Medway NHS Foundation Trust to effectively and quickly improve their performance in a range of areas including clinical leadership, mortality, medical and surgical pathways, and access and flow across the acute service.