Hospital improves patient care

A hospital in Norfolk has gone from fair to excellent in the services it provides to patients, according to the Healthcare Commission's annual survey.

The James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust was the only acute services and specialist provider in the county to score the highest rating.

The same survey rated Great Yarmouth and Waveney Primary Care Trust which serves the same area as weak.

The other hospital trusts in Norwich and King's Lynn were rated good.

The trust running the James Paget Hospital in Gorleston achieved foundation status last year after it was rated excellent in its use of resources, giving it control over its financial affairs.

'Very disappointed'

Over the past year the trust has also improved patients services, moving from a rating of fair to excellent.

Nick Coveney, director of nursing and patient servcies, said patients benefitted from smaller wards that afforded more privacy and dignity and an improvement in cleanliness.

"The trust is being used as an exemplar site for MRSA improvement and we are one of the best performing trusts in England on Cdiff," he said.

"Our levels of cleanliness were confirmed by the award in November 2007 for the best cleaned hospital in England," added Mr Coveney.

Mike Stonnard , chief executive of the Great Yarmouth and Waveney Primary Care Trust, where the James Paget hospital is located, said he was "very disappointed" with the weak performance in both services and use of resources.

He added that there were extensive measures being put in place to bring about improvements and the findings had not had any direct impact on care.

The Norfolk and Waveney Mental Health Care Trust has come out well in the Healthcare Commission's third annual survey.

Its services were rated good and its use of resources was given an excellent rating.