[N]orth Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust’s Renal Units have been rated as the best in the country in a pioneering new patient experience report.
The Trust’s units at the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle and West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven came top in eight of the 13 themes and were ranked best for overall patient experience.
The UK Renal Registry (UKRR) and the British Kidney Patient Association (BKPA) patient experience report looked at 39 Renal Units from across the country in its first Patient Reported Experience Measure (PREM) report.
This is the first report of its kind and a total of 8,162 patients participated in the PREM, which took place over a two week period at Renal Units across the country. Overall 43 questions were asked covering 13 themes.
The Trust scored top in the following themes and scored 9.31 out of 10 in the overall experience question:
How the renal team treat you, access to the Renal team, communication, patient information, tests, sharing decisions about your care, privacy and dignity.
A Renal Unit treats people with kidney conditions and care includes dialysis and transplantation. Many patients have chronic conditions requiring frequent, scheduled visits to the hospital.
The report covered care in both the Cumberland Infirmary and West Cumberland Hospital, as well as outreach clinics in Penrith and Cockermouth.
Dr Fiona Dallas, consultant nephrologist at North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust said: “This is a fantastic achievement for everyone who works in our Renal departments. Everyone here does their very best day in, day out to make patients feel welcomed, cared for and informed.”
Stephen Eames, chief executive at North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust said: “This is fantastic news. Our Renal service was also recognised for ‘outstanding practice’ in our latest Care Quality Commission report, which demonstrates how hard the team is working to provide excellent care to our patients in West, North & East Cumbria.
“Congratulations to the team.”
