Compassionate Care Central To The Hospital Experience, Says Which? UK

Main Category: Nursing / Midwifery
Also Included In: Public Health
Article Date: 19 Jun 2008 - 9:00 PDT

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As the health secretary, Alan Johnson, tells the annual conference of the NHS Confederation that nurses should be measured and their results published on an official website, Which? health campaigner, Clare Corbett, says:

"Going into hospital can be scary but it's a lot easier if you are asked how you feel, have good food, friendly nurses and compassionate care.

"Hospital care can only be improved if people share their experiences, and we have long called* for patient and staff feedback to be acted upon."

Notes

In October 2007 Which? launched their 'Impatient for Change' campaign which calls for:

- Hospitals to analyse the barriers standing in the way of patients giving feedback and staff responding.
- A change in culture to one that welcomes feedback from patients and wants issues to be raised, and that helps patients believe that their opinions are wanted and won't impact negatively on their care.
- Hospitals and staff to be more willing to ask people what's going right and what could be better, and to act on the feedback.

Our research showed that:

- 84 per cent of patients weren't asked their views while in hospital
- 51 per cent of patients with concerns about an aspect of their care, said nothing to staff or the hospital
- 32 per cent of in-patients were unhappy with the quality of the food

Which? interviewed 1,000 patients online using GFK Healthcare's consumer panel during August 2007. All respondents to the survey had spent at least one night in hospital in the previous 12 months.

http://www.which.co.uk

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