Latest news with #CareQualityCommission
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Hospice budgeting for £537,000 deficit
A hospice which offers end-of-life care is budgeting for a deficit in the current financial year of over half a million pounds on its running costs of more than £14m, a report has said. St Luke's Hospice in Sheffield faced a financial deficit of about £537,000 for 2025-26 despite fundraising efforts, according to its most recent Quality Account report. There remained "a lot of uncertainty around funding and support" for the 20-bed in-patient hospice in Whirlow, the report stated. However, the document added that "thanks to careful financial planning, diverse income streams, and strong cost controls, we remain confident in our ability to keep St Luke's sustainable for the future". According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the report said rising staff costs continued to be "a big challenge, especially as NHS pay rises impact the wider job market". "The National Living Wage, rising National Insurance costs and the general increased costs of running our services all impact our finances," it said. "Our NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board funding for 24-25 was 23%, with the remaining 77% being raised through our own activity, such as fundraising and retail." St Luke's, which in 2024 won a Care Quality Commission overall rating of "outstanding", provides end-of-life and palliative care to almost 1,800 people a year and supports their families and carers. As well as its in-patient centre, the hospice provides care to people in their own homes or care homes, accounting for 88% of its patients. In the Quality Account report, Jo Lenton, the hospice's new chief executive and chief nurse, said: "This year, we launched our new strategy for 2025-29, which will help us address some of the challenges our communities will face in the coming years, while also strengthening St Luke's sustainability in light of increasing pressures on multiple fronts. "Our new strategy centres around a new vision of a world where patients and families facing terminal illness don't feel alone, and receive the care and support they need to make the most of precious time, and experience a good death." The report is expected to be discussed by Sheffield City Council's health scrutiny sub-committee on 5 June. Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North Hospice 'routinely' budgeting for annual deficits Kind and caring staff help hospice gain top rating St Luke's Hospice
BBC News
5 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Sheffield St Luke's Hospice budgeting for £537k deficit
A hospice which offers end-of-life care is budgeting for a deficit in the current financial year of over half a million pounds on its running costs of more than £14m, a report has Luke's Hospice in Sheffield faced a financial deficit of about £537,000 for 2025-26 despite fundraising efforts, according to its most recent Quality Account remained "a lot of uncertainty around funding and support" for the 20-bed in-patient hospice in Whirlow, the report the document added that "thanks to careful financial planning, diverse income streams, and strong cost controls, we remain confident in our ability to keep St Luke's sustainable for the future". According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the report said rising staff costs continued to be "a big challenge, especially as NHS pay rises impact the wider job market"."The National Living Wage, rising National Insurance costs and the general increased costs of running our services all impact our finances," it said."Our NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board funding for 24-25 was 23%, with the remaining 77% being raised through our own activity, such as fundraising and retail." 'New strategy' St Luke's, which in 2024 won a Care Quality Commission overall rating of "outstanding", provides end-of-life and palliative care to almost 1,800 people a year and supports their families and well as its in-patient centre, the hospice provides care to people in their own homes or care homes, accounting for 88% of its the Quality Account report, Jo Lenton, the hospice's new chief executive and chief nurse, said: "This year, we launched our new strategy for 2025-29, which will help us address some of the challenges our communities will face in the coming years, while also strengthening St Luke's sustainability in light of increasing pressures on multiple fronts."Our new strategy centres around a new vision of a world where patients and families facing terminal illness don't feel alone, and receive the care and support they need to make the most of precious time, and experience a good death."The report is expected to be discussed by Sheffield City Council's health scrutiny sub-committee on 5 June. Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North
BBC News
5 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Funding rise unlikely for Cambridgeshire's mental health trust
Health bosses at an NHS trust say they are unlikely to get "significant increases" in funding to tackle growing waiting Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust's (CPFT) board of directors heard this week that there were "significant waiting lists" of ADHD and autism of 8 April, there were 9,757 patients on the ADHD and autism waiting list, with a mean average wait of 92 weeks, the trust's board of directors Mike Knapton, non-executive director and quality and safety committee chair, said the trust took waiting lists "very seriously" and said there are "a number of pieces of work" looking at addressing the situation. The CPFT delivers many NHS services that are provided in the community, including physical and mental health, and specialist trust also runs the Cavell Centre in Peterborough, and Fulbourn Hospital in Cambridge. In December, the NHS trust was rated as "requires improvement" for its mental health services for adults of working age. It said at the time that it took the findings of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) "very seriously".The trust's overall rating with the CQC was "good".The report said the ADHD service "continues to be extremely pressured" and that there was "inadequate resource for the demand".Holly Sutherland, chief operating officer, said given the context of NHS finances the trust is "unlikely to get significant increases in funding" to address the increasing demand for said the trust was looking at how it could "transform delivery" to be efficient and get to those who were most in Milner, chair at the trust, said there had been "exceptional growth" in referrals for autism and added that it was a national issue and told the board that she had recently met with chairs at other NHS Trusts, who had shared that they are experiencing the same increases in demand for Milner said they heard from a NHS England representative at this meeting, but said she did not believe a national strategy to address the issue was well developed at this stage. Follow Peterborough news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Scottish Sun
26-05-2025
- Health
- Scottish Sun
I was caged like an animal, made to eat with my hands on the floor and sexually assaulted after a GP appointment
The depressed mum-of-one's visit to the doctor sparked a hideous chain of events MUM'S HELL I was caged like an animal, made to eat with my hands on the floor and sexually assaulted after a GP appointment Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) WHEN teacher Alexis Quinn reached out to her GP for support, she never imagined it would be the worst decision of her life. The single mother, then 27, had suffered a breakdown following the tragic death of her younger brother, Josh, in December 2012. 6 Alexis Quinn was sectioned after displaying signs of depression Credit: Alexis Quinn 6 The single mother with her daughter, now 13 Credit: Alexis Quinn She expected to discuss therapy or perhaps going on anti-depressants, but instead, the teacher was detained under the Mental Health Act. She ended up being held in 12 psychiatric units across the UK for more than three and a half years, feeling 'trapped and caged like an animal'. She says she endured multiple sexual assaults, regular solitary confinement - once for 28 consecutive days - and frequent physical restraints. Alexis says she was misunderstood - in fact she had undiagnosed autism and struggled with major life changes. Fearing a lifetime inside an institution, Alexis escaped hospital with the help of two friends who drove her to Dover, Kent. From there, she managed to reach Africa, where she spent five years rebuilding her life before finally returning home. Today, Alexis, 40, lives in Kent with her two neurodivergent children - a 13-year-old daughter and a five-year-old son. She's an autism advocate and helps advise the Department of Health and Social Care, NHS England and Care Quality Commission (CQC). But the scars remain. She tells Sun Health: 'The thing that sticks the most is just the dehumanisation of you, like you're just a piece of s***. Simple 10-question test that can help determine if you have autism 'It's the feeling that you're so worthless; that you're an animal that can just be locked in a room without a toilet or a shower, and you can sit and eat with your hands. That felt so monstrous. 'I lost nine years of my life - four incarcerated and five rebuilding my life back up abroad. 'I can't get those years back - years that I could have been spending with my daughter and building my career. 'I still constantly feel under threat that I could have my freedom taken away again because the systems that meant I could be detained for so long haven't changed. 'In fact, more autistic people are unnecessarily detained now than when I was.' The latest NHS data shows that 1,435 autistic people remained "locked away" in mental health hospitals in England in March 2025. That's 55 more than in March 2024, and a 136 per cent rise since 2015. Mel Merritt, head of policy and campaigns at the National Autistic Society, says: "Currently autistic people are deprived of their basic liberties in mental health hospitals, where they often face abuse, overmedication, and unnecessary restraint and the average stay is nearly five years. "The only way to end the human rights scandal is to have a proper Government plan." The 2019 NHS Long Term Plan introduced a target to halve the number of autistic people and those with a learning disability in mental health hospitals from March 2015, but this was missed. The NHS Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance for 2025/26 introduced a new target of a 10 per cent minimum reduction. Tragic loss sent Alexis spiralling Alexis' trauma began shortly after returning from five years of teaching in Asia. The Edinburgh University graduate had just started a new job at a grammar school teaching PE, moved back in with her parents, and was caring for her newborn daughter. The baby's father remained in Asia and was not involved. Already overwhelmed, her brother Josh's sudden and heartbreaking death sent her spiralling. As a child, Alexis would often fixate on details - a feature of her undiagnosed autism - which made her an A-grade student and a stellar swimmer who represented Great Britain at international level as a teenager. Now, though, she had become fixated on death. She says: 'I was really interested in how my brother died; how his body shut down, what happened, why it happened.' A few weeks after Josh's death, her GP referred her to a mental health team, which, concerned for her wellbeing, suggested she take a 72-hour respite stay at St Martin's Hospital in Canterbury, to which Alexis agreed. Within hours of arriving, however, she realised something was terribly wrong. They restrained me, pulled my pants down, injected me with sedatives, and left me locked up on Christmas Day Alexis Quinn Alexis, author of UNbroken, Autistic and Expecting, and Improving Mental Health Therapies for Autistic Children and Young People, says: 'The noise of the unit, the busyness, the irate family members - it was overwhelming. 'There was a lot of violence, and I was watching people's distress, but feeling the very same distress myself. 'I entered this cycle of sensory overload and meltdowns.' Autistic meltdowns are extreme sensory and emotional reactions to stressful environments. But because her autism was undiagnosed, Alexis' behaviours were interpreted as dangerous. Staff responded with restraint, sedation, and seclusion. These practices are supposed to be a last resort, but figures released to the Liberal Democrats under the Freedom of Information Act in 2017 suggest they are widespread, with mental health trusts in England restraining patients every 10 minutes, on average. In just one year, patients across 40 trusts were restrained 59,808 times, compared to 46,499 three years earlier (2013-14). 'On Friday, I was teaching in a grammar school. By Monday, I was being told I'm somewhere I'm not allowed to leave,' Alexis says. 'I was like, 'f***ing open the door. This isn't what I signed up for'. 'I equated hospital with care and support. I didn't equate hospital with a complete loss of freedom. 'I'd lost my liberty and I hadn't committed a crime.' 6 After three and a half years 'trapped and caged like an animal' she escaped to Lagos, Nigeria Credit: Alexis Quinn 6 Alexis says she was made to sleep on a thin mattress on the floor (pictured) in solitary confinement for 28 days Credit: Alexis Quinn Alexis was officially sectioned under the Mental Health Act - meaning she was deemed a danger to herself or others and required treatment, whether she agreed or not. She entered a traumatic cycle: overload, meltdown, forced restraint, powerful sedatives, and long-term segregation. Alexis was moved between psychiatric hospitals throughout England, often placed in mixed-sex units. On Christmas Eve 2013, already low at the thought of not being with her daughter, who was with Alexis' mother, she says she was assaulted by a male patient at Littlebrook Hospital in Dartford, after being lured down a corridor. She says: 'He pressed me up against the door and he lifted my top up, and he started to touch me on my breasts. 'He then sort of pulled my trousers down, and all I could hear was his breathing, and everything was slow and really loud. 'I remember not being able to move, and being stuck. I don't know what exactly happened in my mind, but at some point I just pushed him away.' When she reported the assault, she suffered another meltdown and was placed in solitary confinement. 'They restrained me, pulled my pants down, injected me with sedatives, and left me locked in the room on Christmas Day,' Alexis says. 'It was just me.' The key characteristics of autism - and why they go unnoticed By Alice Fuller, Health Features Editor MODEL Christine McGuinness was a 'recluse' for eight years and only left the house at 3am. Springwatch presenter Chris Packham says it makes him a 'task-centric workaholic who sees problems in everything he does'. And recently, Bella Ramsey revealed they were diagnosed after struggling to wear thermals on the set of The Last of Us. But what exactly is autism and why does it seem so different in everyone? Leanne Cooper-Brown, neurodevelopmental lead at Clinical Partners, tells Sun Health: 'Autism is considered a spectrum, so not all people share the same traits. 'Whereas we used to think of autism as a linear line, we have come to realise that terms such as 'high' and 'low' functioning or definitions of 'mild', 'moderate' or 'severe' aren't helpful and can be misleading. 'Nowadays, we think of autism in terms of the strengths and needs of the individual, which can change over time depending on their environment and support network.' About 700,000 people in the UK are thought to have autism - that's one in 100. But research by University College London suggests that number could be twice as high, as many people remain undiagnosed. Cases are on the rise though. Figures released last year showed a 175 per cent increase from 2011 to 2022. Dr Selina Warlow, clinical psychologist and owner of The Nook Neurodevelopmental Clinic, says: 'Conversation around neurodiversity is becoming normalised, and that's so positive to see. But more awareness is needed. 'Receiving a diagnosis can open access to expert resources that support autistic people to thrive in society.' Autism has long been associated with social difficulties, like problems maintaining conversations and forming relationships. But research published in the journal Cell Press suggested that repetitive behaviours - like rocking or finger-flicking - and special interests - whether it's TV shows or specific animals - are more indicative of an autism diagnosis. Generally though, experts say the core characteristics include… Sensitivity - autistic people can be much more or less sensitive to sights, sounds, textures, tastes and smells. For example, they find bright lights or crowded spaces overwhelming, Leanne says. They may also stand too close to others or need to move their whole body to look at something. - autistic people can be much more or less sensitive to sights, sounds, textures, tastes and smells. For example, they find bright lights or crowded spaces overwhelming, Leanne says. They may also stand too close to others or need to move their whole body to look at something. Stimming - to manage this sensory overload, some people use repetitive movements or sounds. 'This is called stimming, and includes rocking, tapping and hand-flapping,' Dr Warlow says. 'Though it's something everyone does to some extent, those with autism are likely to engage with it as a form of self-regulation.' - to manage this sensory overload, some people use repetitive movements or sounds. 'This is called stimming, and includes rocking, tapping and hand-flapping,' Dr Warlow says. 'Though it's something everyone does to some extent, those with autism are likely to engage with it as a form of self-regulation.' Masking - this is a strategy used by some autistic people, consciously or not, to match neurotypical people, Dr Warlow says. 'It's a way of hiding your true characteristics, and could involve copying facial expressions, planning conversations in advance, or holding in 'stimming' - swapping hand clapping with playing with a pen, for example,' she adds. - this is a strategy used by some autistic people, consciously or not, to match neurotypical people, Dr Warlow says. 'It's a way of hiding your true characteristics, and could involve copying facial expressions, planning conversations in advance, or holding in 'stimming' - swapping hand clapping with playing with a pen, for example,' she adds. Burnout - this is a state of physical, mental and emotional exhaustion and is a common feature in autism. 'Being extremely tired, both mentally and physically, can be associated with the act of masking for a long period of time, or sensory or social overload,' Dr Warlow says. 'Symptoms of autistic burnout include social withdrawal, reduced performance and increased sensitivity.' - this is a state of physical, mental and emotional exhaustion and is a common feature in autism. 'Being extremely tired, both mentally and physically, can be associated with the act of masking for a long period of time, or sensory or social overload,' Dr Warlow says. 'Symptoms of autistic burnout include social withdrawal, reduced performance and increased sensitivity.' Social struggles - socialising can be confusing or tiring for autistic people. They often find it hard to understand what others are thinking or feeling, making it challenging to make friends. Leanne says: 'In adults, autism may present as difficulties with interpreting social cues such as understanding body language or sarcasm, struggling to express emotions or preferring to be alone. This can impact relationships and work.' - socialising can be confusing or tiring for autistic people. They often find it hard to understand what others are thinking or feeling, making it challenging to make friends. Leanne says: 'In adults, autism may present as difficulties with interpreting social cues such as understanding body language or sarcasm, struggling to express emotions or preferring to be alone. This can impact relationships and work.' Routine - many of us have a fairly regular daily schedule. But for autistic people, this becomes a 'very strong preference for routine', Leanne says. This could be needing a daily timetable to know what is going to happen and when, or having rigid preferences about foods or clothing. - many of us have a fairly regular daily schedule. But for autistic people, this becomes a 'very strong preference for routine', Leanne says. This could be needing a daily timetable to know what is going to happen and when, or having rigid preferences about foods or clothing. Literal thinking - some autistic people have a literal view of language - like believing it's actually 'raining cats and dogs' or that someone really wants you to 'break a leg'. Dr Warlow says: 'This can result in confusion with figures of speech, irony or indirect requests. 'For instance, being told to 'pull your socks up' might be understood literally, not as a motivational phrase.' - some autistic people have a literal view of language - like believing it's actually 'raining cats and dogs' or that someone really wants you to 'break a leg'. Dr Warlow says: 'This can result in confusion with figures of speech, irony or indirect requests. 'For instance, being told to 'pull your socks up' might be understood literally, not as a motivational phrase.' Hyperfocus - often associated with ADHD, hyperfocusing is also common in autistic people. 'It's where you're able to focus intensely on an activity and become absorbed to the point of forgetting about time,' Dr Warlow says. 'This is useful in work or hobbies but can result in neglect of other aspects of life, such as food or rest.' - often associated with ADHD, hyperfocusing is also common in autistic people. 'It's where you're able to focus intensely on an activity and become absorbed to the point of forgetting about time,' Dr Warlow says. 'This is useful in work or hobbies but can result in neglect of other aspects of life, such as food or rest.' Special interests - we all have hobbies and interests, but for autistic people, these are so compelling they often want to spend all their time learning about, thinking about or doing them. 'Special interests could include anything from dinosaurs to superheroes, and gardening to music,' Dr Warlow says. 'These usually begin in childhood, but can also form as an adult. 'Chris Packham is an example of an autistic person who turned his childhood special interest in animals into a successful career, becoming one of the UK's best-loved natural world TV presenters.' A second assault occurred months later, back at St Martin's, when a male patient groped her in a treatment room. Her mother Linda, a former police officer, filed formal complaints with the Kent and Medway NHS Trust. Both were investigated, and the Trust issued an apology, but no further action was taken. After that, Alexis experienced more sexual assaults. She says: 'It happened a dozen or so times, but I didn't report them because the first two were completely dismissed and actually made my life worse. 'It was put on my record that I was liable to make allegations - even though the police had investigated.' It wasn't until Alexis was transferred to a specialist unit in York in 2014 that a doctor recognised her behaviour for what it was. 'She said, 'Alexis, you're not sick - you're autistic',' Alexis remembers. 'It was liberating. From that moment on, some of the treatment got better. 'People weren't blaming me for my behaviour - they were trying to understand.' 'It was the worst time of my life' She was moved to Milton Park Therapeutic Campus in Bedfordshire - an assessment and treatment unit (ATU) for people with autism and learning disabilities. But what should have been a turning point became her darkest period. She had hoped things would be different with her new diagnosis but within hours of admission, her phone was taken away from her. Feeling trapped once more, Alexis left the unit but was chased down by police. That same day, she was detained and put in solitary confinement for eight days. 'It was the worst time of my life,' she says. 'I spent 28 days in solitary confinement at one point. I was in a room nine steps wide. 'You don't know whether you're dead or alive because when you're not observed and interacted with by staff, that really drives you crazy. 'There's no clock. You are fed on the floor. You don't have a knife and fork so you have to eat with your hands. 'There's no shower, no bedding, just a mattress. It's just disgusting.' We need support that's compassionate, not people being handcuffed, carted off, and being locked in rooms for weeks Alexis Quinn The CQC identified a number of safeguarding issues at Milton Park unconnected to Alexis' experience, and the centre is now closed. By 2016, now in a unit in Ramsgate, Kent, Alexis saw no hope of ever breaking out of the system she felt locked in for more than three years. Two family friends, a retired GP and his partner, learned of her story and started visiting her in care. They helped advocate for her section to be removed, but Alexis learned she would remain detained for another year. The couple had previously joked that they would help her escape if she needed to, so Alexis took them up on the offer. On a spring day in May 2016, Alexis walked out of the hospital garden, picked up a hidden bag of clothes, and climbed into their car. They drove her to Dover. From there, she travelled to Paris, then Dubai, and finally Lagos, Nigeria, where she knew a friend was living. 6 Alexis escaped with the help of a family friend and his partner Credit: Alexis Quinn 6 Alexis is now an autism advocate and helps advise the government and NHS Credit: Alexis Quinn 'I had money saved up from my work in Asia and when the plane took off, I just couldn't stop crying,' she says. 'I felt safe for the first time in four years. 'Then I remember that feeling of the warmth of the African sun on my face and the big blue skies and knowing I could make my own choices again.' She was stopped in France after British authorities flagged she had fled, but decided to let her go, saying there was no legal reason to hold her. The couple who helped her were contacted by police in the aftermath but were not charged. Within a matter of weeks, Alexis was teaching at a school and her daughter, who flew out with her grandparents, soon joined her. Her section was removed in September 2016 following a six-month legal battle, but Alexis stayed in Africa for five years in fear of return. 'It's the moments of intimacy and connection that people take for granted that I appreciated the most,' she says. 'The little things, too. I now got to choose who saw me naked and who saw me with no make-up. 'I was no longer being watched on CCTV, forced to eat off the floor, or urinate in corners.' What does it mean to be sectioned and detained? Sectioned: This term refers to being detained under a specific "section" of the Mental Health Act 1983. It means that an individual is legally required to stay in a hospital or mental health facility for assessment or treatment for their mental health condition, whether they agree or not. The specific "section" determines the circumstances and duration of the detention. For example: Section 2: For assessment (up to 28 days). Section 3: For treatment (up to six months, renewable). Section 4: Emergency detention (up to 72 hours). To be sectioned just refers to the legal process. Someone should only be sectioned if: They need to be assessed or treated for a mental health problem Their health would be at risk of getting worse if they did not get treatment Their safety or someone else's safety would be at risk if they did not get treatment Their doctor thinks they need to be assessed or treated in hospital, for example if they need to be monitored very regularly because they have to take new or very powerful medication. Otherwise, they may be asked to attend a hospital out-patient clinic. If you are sectioned, you can be kept in hospital, stopped from leaving the ward and given treatment for your mental health problems, possibly without your consent. Detained: This is the broader legal term that refers to being held in a hospital under the Mental Health Act. If someone is "sectioned," they are also "detained." However, "detained" is the formal legal term, while "sectioned" is more commonly used in everyday language. An individual is detained because health professionals believe they pose a risk to themselves or others due to their mental health. Between April 2022 and March 2023, more than 51,000 people were detained under the Act in the UK. This is nearly an eight per cent reduction compared to the previous year's figures. Black people were nearly four times more likely to be detained under the Act than white people. People from deprived areas were also nearly four times more likely to be detained for mental health treatment. If you are sectioned, you normally have the right to get help from someone called an independent mental health advocate (IMHA) who can help you find out what rights you have while you are sectioned, and how to be discharged from hospital and get the section lifted. A family member will have certain legal rights related to your sectioning. Today, Alexis is back in the UK. She has not only rebuilt her life as a qualified counsellor and psychotherapist, but also committed herself to improving the system that failed her. As a human rights campaigner, she advocates for better understanding of autism and champions community-based care over institutionalisation. Through other work advising the CQC, she also hopes to influence policies and hold care providers accountable. 'We need support that's compassionate,' she says. 'Not people being handcuffed and carted off. Not people being locked in rooms for weeks. 'I know the treatment people still receive is harsh and unjust. People are dying.' Despite all she has endured, Alexis remains hopeful. 'I don't think you can put into words what my friends did for me, so what I do is to just try and make the best of my life, and I try to make the best of it for other people,' she says. 'I try to contribute in a positive way to make sure this stuff doesn't happen again to anyone. 'I can't make up for lost time with my daughter, now 13, but I can hopefully show my children there's a different path.'
BBC News
22-05-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Children's Experiences in Hospital Care Survey report published by CQC
A recent survey has found that most children have a positive experience when they have to go to some others also reported not feeling listened to by doctors and staff and to being bothered about how long they had to wait to be report by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) looked into children's experiences in hospital through a survey that 25,000 children and their families filled in between March-May 2024, asking what they thought of the care they survey results were then used to write a report which tells hospitals what's working for kids and what isn't. What is the CQC? CQC stands for Care Quality Commission and among their jobs is checking that places like hospitals, doctor's surgeries and dentists are safe and staff there look after people properly. They do this through visits, inpsections and surveys (like this one). They might ask questions like: Is everyone safe or are the doctors and nurses kind? The answers and what they find is then written up into a report that says: What is being done well?What needs to get better? What did kids say was good about hospital care? When asked if how looked after they felt in hospital, 7 out of 10 (73%) children aged 8-15 said that they felt staff looked after them "very well" in also mostly felt included in their care, and were able to ask doctors and nurses about how they were cared for and felt they had a say in any decisions. According to the survey nearly 8 out of 10 (79%) of children aged 8–11 and nearly 9 out of 10 ( 87%) aged 12–15 felt as involved as they wanted to be in decisions about their in hospital can also be boring for children but just over half (53%) of 8 to 15 year olds said that staff played or did activities with them while they were in hospital 'as much as I wanted'.When it came to hospital food, around 8 out of 10 parents (76%) and children aged 12-15 (81%) said that there was always, or sometimes, enough choice of things to eat. What did children say was bad about hospital care? It wasn't all good news when it came to how children felt they were treated. Nearly 3 in 10 (28%) aged 8-15 said staff did not 'always' listen to what they had to say and 1 in 20 (5%) said they didn't feel listened to "at all".The CQC also found that children and young people with a disability, a mental health condition, or autism were less happy with their experiences in parents didn't always feel they or their children were listened too and or felt their child's needs, such as language support or physical adaptations, were being example, just under 6 out of 10 (58%) parents and carers of kids with disabilities said staff 'definitely' took their child's existing individual needs into account, compared with more than 7 out of 10 (75%) among children and young people who are not disabled. It also made a big difference why children were going to hospital. Children who went in for emergencies had a worse experience than those who had planned appointmentsWaiting was a big issue and when survey asked the what bothered children the most about waiting, 3 in 5 (61%) said it was how long they had to wait and 2 in 5 (41%) complained they didn't really know what was happening,Staying in hospital can also be a difficult time and two thirds (66%) of those answering this question said they were stopped from sleeping by things like noise from other people (42%), noise from medical equipment (31%) and hospital lighting (16%). What happens next? The results of the survey findings are now shared so that hospitals can review their results and CQC says that it will use the findings as they carry on inspecting and monitoring the services that children Chief Inspector Aidan Fowler said that while the NHS should be "pleased with the results of the 2024 survey" it does need improvement "particularly in cases where children had a mental health condition and for autistic or disabled children.""I'd urge hospital trusts to examine the results of this survey, together with our inspection reports to help them identify any changes they can make to ensure all children and young people receive the best quality of care every time," he added.
