Review of discharge in Bedford Borough
Download (PDF 658.9 KB)Summary of report content
Between May and October 2014, Healthwatch Bedford Borough conducted research to gather the views and experiences of people being discharged from hospital. In order to reach as many people as possible they developed a questionnaire, conducted five announced Enter and View visits , and held four focus groups to reach the homeless, the elderly, and people with mental health conditions of people. These three groups had been identified by Healthwatch England as being particularly at risk if hospital discharge was not carried out effectively.
The report notes that communication between teams and organisations plays a crucial role and regular, face to face meetings between and within organisations is what works best. Many organisations, such as those providing support for the homeless, were not always included in the discharge process. On the other hand, according to the findings, the complex discharge team at Bedford Hospital has made significant improvements to patients’ journeys. The overall experience of discharge from Bedford Hospital was good with 81% of patients recommending Bedford Hospital to their family and friends.
While there are many positives in this review, there are also individual cases where patients had been let down. The Enter and View reports were sent, and responded, to by the individual providers so there is evidence of improvements having already been made as a result of this piece of work. These improvements include: updated signage in the Bedford Hospital discharge lounge; a group of care home and nursing home managers has been formed to develop processes for discharges to care homes and; Bedford Borough teams are working closely with the hospital trusts to develop good multi agency teams.
The reports finishes with three recommendations: improved communication with family members, between and within teams and with
outside support organisations; a discharge information pack with information regarding the expected pathway be given to patients on admission; quick access to medication on the day of discharge.
These final recommendations have been disseminated with the report to all those involved in the commissioning and provision of services with an invitation to work with Healthwatch Bedford Borough to ensure the improvements are implemented.