Northampton General Hospital boss issues apology and explanation over state of accident and emergency department

Northampton General Hospital has apologised to patients after its accident and emergency department has been heavily criticised recently.

Heidi Smoult, NGH Chief Executive, has addressed the growing concerns surrounding the A&E department, particularly long wait times.

The health boss said: “I would like to apologise to any patient...who has not received the experience they would expect from our hospital emergency department (ED). I know that at the moment we cannot consistently provide the patient experience that I would want our patients to receive, particularly due to longer wait times. The experience our patients have received has not been what I or the team would want it to be. We are working hard as a hospital team, and with our health and social care community to find solutions and provide the best care we can.”

Ms Smoult thanked all of her staff for maintaining patient safety and doing ‘all they can to provide quality care in challenging circumstances that are beyond their control’.

Rising Demand

The chief executive said the A&E department is ‘very busy at the moment’ and explained why this is.

Ms Smoult said: “We are seeing a lot more patients coming to our ED who are really unwell and need to be admitted to the hospital. We have also started to see an increase in Covid, flu and norovirus cases in the hospital. We know that this is the case for many other hospitals too nationally and we are anticipating further demand for our services as we move into winter.

“One of the other factors which impacts on how quickly we can see and treat patients is the flow in the hospital. Flow refers to how we move patients through their care journey from the point that they arrive in the hospital until the time when they are well enough to leave. We need patients to be discharged from hospital in order to release a bed to treat those who need to be admitted.”

Shelter outside of A&E

There has been a gazebo tent outside of the A&E department since the summer to protect patients from the sun.

However, the gazebo is still being used by patients waiting to be booked in, which has seen some elderly patients waiting in poor conditions. The Trust said it is addressing the issue of the shelter and, over the next few weeks, is looking at plans to put in place a 12mx6m fully heated and protected cabin building in this space.

The Trust said: “This will enable patients to wait and be safely triaged, in a protected area overseen by appropriate clinical staff, before being treated, as required, by the emergency department’s team. The plan is subject to final agreement and costings.”

What is NGH doing about improving this and the overall ED experience?

Ms Smoult said an external review into NGH’s A&E department identified that it is ‘too small and that we need additional capacity to support demand’.

She said: “We have been working alongside our internal estates and facilities team, our clinical teams in ED and with contractors and architects to identify solutions. We are currently looking at multiple options with these teams to see how they could work clinically, and we are keen to get something in place as soon as possible.

"We are also looking at our overall urgent care offering and exploring opportunities for an urgent care centre. We are looking at the benefits of having a centre locally and are working with the system and NHS to see if this is a viable option.

"We have always tried to make the best use of the space we have and look at where new facilities can be built and how to improve on existing spaces and bring them up to modern standards.”

Improving facilities

Ms Smoult said that in recent years NGH has made significant improvements to the site but that ‘there are always things we can improve on for patients and the current situation in ED is difficult for all in involved’.

She said: “I hope that by providing some insight into the situation and what we are trying to do our community will be reassured that we are doing what we can to support their needs.”

How people can help

Ms Smoult said the community community can help by choosing the most appropriate service for their care by using NHS 111 and the NHS app.

She said: “I would like to ask the community to please bear with us and although the situation may be a challenge, please show our teams kindness. Please be assured we are doing what we can to improve the experience for our patients and provide the best care for the people in Northampton.”

What has our MP said?

In a letter penned in August, Andrew Lewer MP said he raised the issue to Parliament of funding a ‘walk-in’ urgent treatment centre in the grounds of the hospital as one measure that could alleviate A&E waiting times and take some of the pressure off GP surgeries in Northampton.

Mr Lewer said: “The NGH management has already identified a site in the hospital grounds. All it needs now is the funding and this is why...I will be lobbying and campaigning for the funding needed. This will not be a cure-all, but it will at least help ease some of the pressures and will lead to better outcomes and experiences, both for patients and the medical professionals that serve us.”