Enter and view: Downhills Ward and St Ann's Hospital

Healthwatch Enfield gather information on people’s experiences of health and social care services and there are times when it is appropriate for Healthwatch Enfield to see and hear for themselves how services are being delivered: these visits are called ‘Enter and View’, they are not inspections.

Healthwatch Enfield visited Downhills Ward, St Ann’s Hospital on Thursday 19 March 2015 and Wednesday 29 April 2015.

The summary of findings highlighted areas in relation to patient feedback, staff feedback and observation. The overall impression Healthwatch Enfield gained from our visits to Downhills Ward was that the manager and staff work hard to provide skilled support to the patients in their care, but that their ability to provide an excellent service is limited, largely by circumstances beyond their immediate control. The ward operates in a very challenging physical environment in old premises which urgently need to be replaced. There appears to be severe pressure on beds, exacerbated by the shortage of suitable accommodation locally for patients to move into when they are ready to be discharged. Healthwatch Enfield found that patient experience is compromised by the poor environment, with some patients having to share four-bedded dormitories, and with limited access to secure outdoor space. Healthwatch Enfield also gained the strong impression that staff are over-stretched, and do not have enough time to deliver person-centred care on a consistent basis to all the patients. Healthwatch Enfield hope that some of the recommendations we have made can be implemented quite swiftly and at no great cost. Healthwatch Enfield recognise that other recommendations may be more difficult to implement and may take more time.

There were 20 recommendations in this report.