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Case/Article Review 18
You have two minutes to read the enclosed article, and you will subsequently be asked a range of questions by the interviewer. You may wish to make notes, however please note you will not be allowed to refer to your notes or the article during the discussion.
"Urgent enforcement action" has been taken against a hospital trust after an inspection highlighted safety fears. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspected Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust last week amid claims of staff shortages. It means the watchdog has the ability to suspend the trust's registration or impose restrictions on it. The trust, which has 28 days to appeal against the notice, said it will "work hard to reassure the CQC and patients". The trust was already under investigation over allegations of dozens of avoidable deaths and injuries in its maternity unit. The latest notice primarily applies to the systems in place "around patients who may present with sepsis or other deteriorating medical conditions in Emergency Departments and the environmental safety of our Emergency Department at the Princess Royal Hospital", Chief Executive Simon Wright said in a statement. "Work on identified areas had already begun before this notification and we will continue to work hard in these areas to reassure the CQC, and therefore our patients and staff, that these procedures are in place", Mr Wright added. Heidi Smoult, the CQC's deputy chief inspector of hospitals, said last month's inspection "identified concerns regarding patient safety". "We have now taken urgent enforcement action against the trust to ensure that people always get the care and treatment they have every right to expect." There's a sense of inevitability about the CQC action. The trust's A&E performance has been struggling for years, with patients and health bosses in Shropshire becoming increasingly concerned.
The trust has also struggled to hire staff, both consultants and junior doctors; it recently conducted interviews by Skype with eight doctors in India.
(Adapted from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-shropshire-45435551)
Outline the main issues raised.
"Urgent enforcement action" has been taken against a hospital trust after an inspection highlighted safety fears. The Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspected Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust last week amid claims of staff shortages. It means the watchdog has the ability to suspend the trust's registration or impose restrictions on it. The trust, which has 28 days to appeal against the notice, said it will "work hard to reassure the CQC and patients". The trust was already under investigation over allegations of dozens of avoidable deaths and injuries in its maternity unit. The latest notice primarily applies to the systems in place "around patients who may present with sepsis or other deteriorating medical conditions in Emergency Departments and the environmental safety of our Emergency Department at the Princess Royal Hospital", Chief Executive Simon Wright said in a statement. "Work on identified areas had already begun before this notification and we will continue to work hard in these areas to reassure the CQC, and therefore our patients and staff, that these procedures are in place", Mr Wright added. Heidi Smoult, the CQC's deputy chief inspector of hospitals, said last month's inspection "identified concerns regarding patient safety". "We have now taken urgent enforcement action against the trust to ensure that people always get the care and treatment they have every right to expect." There's a sense of inevitability about the CQC action. The trust's A&E performance has been struggling for years, with patients and health bosses in Shropshire becoming increasingly concerned.
The trust has also struggled to hire staff, both consultants and junior doctors; it recently conducted interviews by Skype with eight doctors in India.
(Adapted from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-shropshire-45435551)
Outline the main issues raised.
Average Candidate Response
This article highlighted the issue of struggling hospitals, and the range of measures that can be used to address the shortcomings. This includes controversial steps such as recruiting front line medical professionals from abroad with limited interviewing.
This article highlighted the issue of struggling hospitals, and the range of measures that can be used to address the shortcomings. This includes controversial steps such as recruiting front line medical professionals from abroad with limited interviewing.
Excellent Candidate Response
The main issues highlighted in this article concern the failings of Shrewsbury and Telford hospital trust in ensuring patient safety. The text describes the implementations that have been put into place to tackle these problems; it is stated that the Care Quality Commission may suspend or impose limits on the trust, potentially hindering its ability to provide care to patients.
When discussing this issue, one must consider the effects that this action could have on healthcare systems elsewhere. Should this trust be suspended or prohibited from treating patients, there would be an influx of patients to adjacent hospitals. As A&E departments in particular are already suffering from increasing numbers of patients, this - coupled with limited resources – could cause additional stress on neighbouring trusts. Furthermore, ambulance services from these hospitals may have to commute a greater distance to reach patients, which could further compromise patient care as waiting times increase.
However, one must also give thought to the risks in allowing this trust to continue treating patients. One key issue raised in this article is the shortage of staff. This has resulted in the recruitment of doctors from abroad; for example, doctors in India underwent interviews via Skype. A lack of staff available in this hospital could significantly undermine patient safety – there could be repercussions such as an increased pressure on doctors, a deficit in consultants being available to treat patients suffering from urgent cases, and a greater likelihood of mistakes being made. The article states that patients suffering from sepsis and other deteriorating conditions are already not receiving a suitable level of care, thus increased stress on doctors could worsen this and threaten patients’ beneficence.
Therefore, it could be argued that the action imposed by the Care Quality Commission may actually benefit the trust, through allowing appropriate changes to be made that would ensure all patients receive optimum care.
The main issues highlighted in this article concern the failings of Shrewsbury and Telford hospital trust in ensuring patient safety. The text describes the implementations that have been put into place to tackle these problems; it is stated that the Care Quality Commission may suspend or impose limits on the trust, potentially hindering its ability to provide care to patients.
When discussing this issue, one must consider the effects that this action could have on healthcare systems elsewhere. Should this trust be suspended or prohibited from treating patients, there would be an influx of patients to adjacent hospitals. As A&E departments in particular are already suffering from increasing numbers of patients, this - coupled with limited resources – could cause additional stress on neighbouring trusts. Furthermore, ambulance services from these hospitals may have to commute a greater distance to reach patients, which could further compromise patient care as waiting times increase.
However, one must also give thought to the risks in allowing this trust to continue treating patients. One key issue raised in this article is the shortage of staff. This has resulted in the recruitment of doctors from abroad; for example, doctors in India underwent interviews via Skype. A lack of staff available in this hospital could significantly undermine patient safety – there could be repercussions such as an increased pressure on doctors, a deficit in consultants being available to treat patients suffering from urgent cases, and a greater likelihood of mistakes being made. The article states that patients suffering from sepsis and other deteriorating conditions are already not receiving a suitable level of care, thus increased stress on doctors could worsen this and threaten patients’ beneficence.
Therefore, it could be argued that the action imposed by the Care Quality Commission may actually benefit the trust, through allowing appropriate changes to be made that would ensure all patients receive optimum care.