The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated the Priory Group’s Burton Park hospital inadequate and placed it in special measures for having poor leadership and compromising patient safety.
The CQC inspected the specialist Leicestershire hospital, which cares for people needing neurobehavioral rehabilitation, in March after concerns were raised about the care it delivered.
The CQC’s inspection found the hospital’s leaders were detached, defensive and failed to treat staff with respect, that staff did not always use face masks and hand sanitiser to prevent the spread of Covid, they did not always wash their hands when handling food, and that managers had failed to act quickly when allegations of abuse from staff towards patients were raised.
Consequently, the hospital was ordered to regularly review risk assessments, ensure it has adequate permanent staffing, embed robust procedures and act immediately on complaints of abuse.
It must also ensure staff are treated with respect and receive regular supervision, review its culture to ensure high quality care, keep patient records secure and undertake regular reviews of patient observations.
Downgraded and warning notices
While the hospital had previously been rated as requires improvement, it has now been downgraded to inadequate and placed in special measures. The CQC added the hospital has received three CQC warning notices following the latest inspection.
Commenting on the action taken, CQC head of inspection for mental health and community services Jenny Wilkes said: “Care at Burton Park did not meet standards people should be able expect because it suffered from poor leadership.
“Staff were insufficiently supervised, and managers failed to understand the issues the service faced. This, along with a lack of respect shown by leaders towards staff, created a negative culture where policies to ensure people’s safety were not successfully implemented or monitored.
“The lack of oversight led to issues with infection prevention and control, including to manage Covid-19, and a failure to act quickly when safeguarding issues were raised. Leaders also failed to use staff and patient insight to identify problems and drive improvement.”
Wilkes did highlight that the hospital’s facilities were well equipped and maintained and that staff followed best practice to prevent and manage challenging behaviour, and work was underway to improve compliance with staff training targets – including for safeguarding.
“We are monitoring the hospital closely and will take further action to protect people if we are not assured care is being delivered safely,” she added.
In response, a Burton Park hospital spokesman said: “We have been working closely with colleagues to address all the issues raised by the CQC and substantial improvements in performance, and the delivery of care, have already been made.
“These include a rigorous enforcement of infection prevention and hygiene controls. Senior leaders are working closely with staff to ensure clinically safe and sustainable patient services, and a recruitment drive is underway.
“Additional leadership has been put in place so staff feel fully supported in raising issues or concerns, and, alongside this, our reporting and risk assessment processes have been significantly enhanced.”