05:05PM, Tuesday 12 November 2024
Heatherwood Hospital in Ascot (Credit: NHS Frimley Health)
Heatherwood Hospital has been rated the best healthcare facility in England in an NHS survey of people receiving elective care.
Patients who took part in the National NHS Adult Inpatient Survey gave the Ascot hospital the highest average score in the country for overall patient experience.
The survey, published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), looked at the experience of 63,573 patients nationwide who stayed at least one night in hospital during November 2023.
Heatherwood Elective Centre managing director Angela Lawes, said: “We are very proud to receive such positive results and for Heatherwood to be ranked number one out of all the inpatient NHS hospital sites covered by the survey data.”
Elective care is healthcare that is planned in advance – for example a scheduled operation or scan.
The NHS survey results were published in the full national benchmarking report earlier this autumn, with the data shown at both NHS trust and individual hospital site level.
It found Heatherwood patients on average rated their overall experience 9.7 out of 10, the best of any individual hospital included in the survey.
Ms Lawes said: “Heatherwood is a dedicated planned care hub which doesn’t face the same pressures as acute hospitals with busy A&E departments.
“However, it is a huge achievement, particularly as a relatively new hospital, to be first compared to all other NHS elective inpatient hospitals across the country.
A Heatherwood patient featured in the survey praised the hospital’s staff and said they were ‘eternally grateful’ for the service offered there.
“The NHS has provided me with a superlative service,” they said.
“I shall be eternally grateful for all the Heatherwood staff, doctors and nurses who made my stay and operation a success.
“My surgeon has been nothing but professional, courteous and thoroughly knowledgeable throughout.
“An absolute credit to his chosen craft.”
Heatherwood Hospital was rebuilt alongside a previous hospital site and reopened in 2022.
Since then, it has been formally opened by HRH the Duchess of Edinburgh and visited by two government health ministers who both praised the model of care at Heatherwood and the amazing teams who deliver it for patients.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting visited the hospital earlier this year and, speaking to the Express, described it as ‘the future of the NHS’.
Discussing future plans at Heatherwood Hospital Ms Lawes said:
“The survey provided a wealth of information, including some areas for improvement which we’ll be working to address, such as providing more detailed follow-up information for patients when they leave hospital.
She added: “The many positive responses are testament to the commitment of the Heatherwood team and reflect the ethos of all of our dedicated Frimley Health staff, who work extremely hard to provide excellent care to our patients.”
Heatherwood has also been accredited as a national surgical hub and a community diagnostic hub.
It is run by NHS Frimley Health Foundation Trust.
For more information on the survey see the CQC website here.
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