Royal Hampshire County Hospital

RHCH provide a full range of planned and emergency district general hospital services, including a 24-hour accident and emergency, general and specialist surgery, general medicine, intensive care, rehabilitation, chemotherapy, diagnostic services, maternity, neonatal, gynaecology, paediatric care and outpatient clinics. 

RHCH pioneered the use of intraoperative radiotherapy for breast cancer treatment. 

We inspected Royal Hampshire County Hospital on 15 and 16 January 2020. We visited theatres, the pre-assessment unit, Wainwright ward, Bartlett ward, St Cross ward, the same day care unit and the treatment centre. We spoke with approximately 15 patients two relatives/visitors and over 30 members of staff that included all grades of nursing staff, healthcare assistants, domestic staff, surgeons, anaesthetists, junior doctors, therapists, a radiographer and managers. 

We observed care and treatment patients were receiving and reviewed 16 patients’ records.

We undertook an announced inspection of the urgent and emergency care services on the 15 and 16 January 2020. 

We previously inspected this service in June 2018. At that time the service was rated inadequate overall, with safe, and well led rated as inadequate, effective and responsive requiring improvement and caring as good. 

During this inspection we spoke with four patients and four relatives and carers. We spoke with approximately 24 members of staff including nurses, managers, health care support workers, doctors and reception staff. We observed care in the service and looked at 12 sets of patients’ records.