CQC removes warning notice against Nottingham University Hospital

In a further sign of improvement at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH), two warning notices issued by the UK’s independent healthcare regulator, the Care Quality Commission (CQC), have been removed.

CQC will issue a warning notice if it identifies any concerns that require significant remediation.

In 2021, NUH was issued with a section 29A warning notice due to concerns about the trust’s leadership and governance. A similar warning notice was issued a year later due to concerns in maternity services, including staffing.

Since then, there have been improvements to maternity services and the way the trust operates, as identified by the CQC during an inspection last year.

Inspectors found that maternity services were no longer inadequate, raising the overall rating of services at both Nottingham City Hospital and Queen’s Medical Center (QMC) to require improvement.

The CQC also recognized significant improvements in the trust’s leadership and culture and the way it is managed, raising the Well-Leaded rating from ‘inadequate’ to ‘requires improvement’. They found that “significant progress in improving the culture” had resulted in fewer staff reporting bullying, and that management “consistently led with integrity and took an open and honest approach”.

In lifting the warning notice, the CQC said it was “satisfied that governance arrangements have been improved to ensure oversight of midwifery staffing and medical and midwifery training requirements”.

The CQC further states that “there is oversight in the management of maternity services, effective quality assurance systems are in place to support safe and high quality care, and risks and incident occurrences are appropriately identified and acted upon.” “This includes effective systems for recording actions taken,” he added. Every incident is reviewed to ensure we learn from it and that incident scoring is accurate and in line with national guidance. ”

As a result of this progress, NUH no longer has any license warning notices or conditions from the CQC.

CEO Anthony May, who joined NUH in September 2022, said of the ongoing improvements:

“We are fully aware that we need to make further progress in both of these areas and are committed to continuing to make that progress, but this is an important step in our improvement journey. This milestone is a testament to the continued efforts and dedication of our team.

“For the communities we serve, this is further evidence that our hospitals are improving and we would like to thank all of our colleagues and external partners who are contributing to these improvements. I want to express it.”

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• The CQC obstetrics survey found that each area of ​​NUH has improved significantly from 2022 onwards.

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