Worthing maternity services downgraded to requiring improvement
The Care Quality Commission found breaches in safe care and management at Worthing Hospital during an inspection in April.
Maternity services at a Sussex hospital have been downgraded from good to requiring improvement by a watchdog.
The Care Quality Commission found breaches in safe care and management at Worthing Hospital during an inspection in April.
It raised concerns women were being put at risk because leaders didn't ensure staff were accurately noting what medicines were being administered or consistently completing observations.
Inspectors also noted pregnant women couldn't always find a seat in a busy corridor being used as a waiting room, meaning people often had to move to let staff transporting beds through.
Staff under pressure
Amanda Williams, CQC deputy director of hospitals, secondary and specialist care in the South East, said their visit found staff were put under extra pressure because of an increase in demand.
"Despite this, feedback from women about the care and support they received was consistently positive and we saw staff treating people with kindness and respect," she added.
“However, it was clear that although the trust had taken some action to address concerns raised at the previous inspection, progress was slow and the service still wasn’t consistently keeping women and babies safe."
The report highlighted that delayed C-sections were the most commonly reported incident in the ward - yet it only had one dedicated obstetric theatre.
Gaps in training were also identified.
High-quality care Trust's "highest priority"
The University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust is now being asked to provide a details of how it plans to improve.
It's spokesperson said:
“We accept the CQC's findings and the need to continue improving our maternity services. Providing safe, high-quality care for women, babies and families is our highest priority, and we fully recognise the areas where improvements are needed.
“Since the inspection, we have taken further action, including securing funding to strengthen staffing and recruiting specialist roles.
"We are also introducing enhanced support in pharmacy, perinatal mental health and bereavement care, whilst further strengthening services for vulnerable women and families."