West Midlands Ambulance Service downgraded after patients had to wait longer for ambulances

West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust provides emergency ambulance services to 5.6 million people across the Black Country, Shropshire, Staffordshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire.

Although WMAS’s ratings have fallen, it has fallen from ‘outstanding’ to ‘requires improvement’ in the ‘effective’ category, although it remains the best in the country for responding to 999 calls.

Charlotte Rudge, CQC deputy director of operations for the Midlands region, said: “External challenges across the health system have meant that delays in hospital handovers have resulted in ambulances queuing for hours in accident and emergency departments, and people are suffering. “Their care and welfare was affected.”

“This resulted in longer response times for people who called ambulances and had a negative impact on staff who were doing their best to provide people with safe care and treatment.”

But Ms Rudge was impressed by the trust’s leadership.

She said: “Our tour of the West Midlands Ambulance Service University NHS Foundation Trust showed that the leaders have the skills, knowledge and experience to run the service successfully.

“We found that this trust is working hard to improve its culture so that people who use services, their families and staff can raise concerns without fear. Improvements have been made and you can now speak freely about guardianship services.

“However, during inspections, some staff said they still felt unable to speak up and be heard. “We know that services that do not have an open culture have a negative impact on society; The Trust must continue to work on this issue.’ People care. ”

CQC found that staff were skilled at dealing with traumatized people when ambulances did not arrive immediately.

Ms Rudge said: “At our two emergency operations centres, our service to 999 calls was the best in the country. “We also found that when listening to calls in our emergency operations centres, our staff were very responsive to the situation, especially when there were delays in service. It was reassuring to hear that they understand the psychological impact that people have on their health and the people around them. They are well-trained and dedicated to helping people get the care they need. I responded in a similar way.

“We will continue to monitor the trust, including through further testing, to ensure that the necessary improvements are made to ensure people are safe and continue to receive the appropriate standard of care.”

Despite the downgrade, the trust’s chief executive, Anthony Marsh, welcomed the report. The struggles faced by staff became a ratings hit on the BBC’s On the Frontline.

He said: “Our overall rating has dropped from ‘outstanding’ to ‘good’, which is disappointing given how hard our staff work every day, but the areas where inspectors are considerate remain outstanding. I’m glad that I continue to believe.”

“Furthermore, inspectors currently rate our Emergency Operations Center (EOC) as excellent, the only one in the nation. As stated in the report, we have the best telephone answering capabilities in the nation. We treat more patients over the phone than any other trust.

“However, the biggest change noted by inspectors was in our effectiveness, which has fallen from outstanding to requiring improvement.” We have made it very clear that these delays have resulted in our crews being stuck outside the hospital for hours, unable to serve patients in the region. It has also been pointed out that it has a significant negative impact on health.

“As a trust, this is an issue we have raised many times and the trust board has rated this risk at 25, the highest possible rate. We understand the pressures our partners are under. “We continue to do everything we can to work with our partners to make the necessary changes to get it to patients faster.”

Complaints about bullying at the trust persist, with members complaining about the pressures they are under.

Mr Marsh added: “Given that this test took place at perhaps the most difficult time in the NHS’s history, there is much to be proud of. However, we also note the comments about our culture. The report notes the work we have done to ensure staff feel heard and colleagues are treated with the respect they deserve.

“The trust has seen the full involvement of its staff in developing a new cultural statement, establishing a sexual safety charter, developing a six-person staff network and significantly increasing the health and wellbeing support available. I’ve been working hard on it for 18 months. I’m an individual.”