BASILDON'S struggling maternity unit has been heavily criticised after inspectors found a "long-standing poor staff culture had created an ineffective team".

In its second scathing report into the Nethermayne hospital's unit in 2020, the Care Quality Commission said the "long-standing poor staff culture had created an ineffective team where doctors, midwives and other healthcare professionals did not support each other to provide good care".

It said maternity services at the hospital remained "inadequate" overall.

Earlier this year, the watchdog demanded safety improvements after a string of incidents, including one where a woman bled to death in childbirth.

But during an unannounced inspection on September 18, the CQC identified "several serious concerns" which came after the department received its warning in June.

Inspectors also found leaders did not have the skills and abilities to effectively lead the service. Some staff did not feel able to approach colleagues which did not benefit the care of women and babies.  

The trust which runs the hospital said it had taken "immediate action".

Professor Ted Baker, the CQC’s Chief Inspector of Hospitals, said: "On our return to Basildon University Hospital’s maternity service, we were disappointed to see some longstanding concerns around staff culture and poor behaviours were still impacting on women’s care.

“Doctors, midwives and other healthcare professionals did not always work well together, and the absence of an open culture meant that staff did not always feel able to raise issues or report incidents so that learning could be effectively shared to help embed improvements.

“All staff we met during our inspection were welcoming, friendly and helpful. However, it was evident that many were concerned about the safety issues within their department.

“Inspectors received an action plan on steps to improve staff culture from the trust’s leadership after the June inspection. These improvements were still in their infancy, however, and had not yet been embedded on our latest visit."

He added: “Following the inspection, we placed conditions on the trust’s registration to ensure mothers and babies have access to safe, effective and personalised care.

“In addition to this enforcement action, our inspection team escalated their ongoing concerns to NHS England and NHS Improvement and a risk summit was held to discuss a way forward to ensure sustained improvements are made.

“The leadership team is clear about the steps they need to take, and we will continue to monitor progress closely and will inspect again to check the necessary improvements have been made.”

Clare Panniker, Chief Executive for Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We acknowledge and accept the CQC’s findings and have taken immediate action to make our services better for women and their families, which we are determined to continue.

“Our robust improvement plan includes introducing extra consultant cover, putting additional leadership in place to support staff, improving staffing levels and working more closely with expectant and new mums so we can deliver a service that meets their needs.”

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