FRIMLEY Park Hospital has laid claim to being one of the highest performing NHS trusts in England, after scoring an "excellent" rating for financial performance and "good" for quality of services in the Healthcare Commission's annual Healthcheck. Its combined rating is the best for any hospital across the two strategic health authorities which cover its catchment area, said chief executive Andrew Morris. In fact only two hospitals in the country - The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Hospital and Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust - were rated excellent in both clinical and financial performance. The healthcheck – the most stringent assessment ever of NHS performance - has replaced the old "star ratings" system under which Frimley Park gained the maximum three stars in four years out of five. Frimley Park and The Royal Surrey County Hospital at Guildford, either of which could see their A & E department axed, have been keen to trumpet their ratings under the check. Mr Morris said that Frimley Park's staff really rose to the challenge. "Trusts not only have to show that they are meeting core standards but they also have to provide evidence of continuous improvements. "I know that throughout this year our staff have been doing their utmost to make services for patients even better and they are striving for the top rating for clinical performance in 2006/07. "The fact that we have performed better than any trust across the South East Coast and the South Central Strategic Health Authorities speaks volumes about their commitment at every level." The score for quality of services covers a range of areas that can affect the care and treatment a patient receives, including access to services, safety and the way an organisation is run. Both Frimley Park and The Royal Surrey achieved the national standard of 98 per cent of patients being seen in A & E within four hours and a range of other standards including a two-week maximum wait from urgent GP referral to out-patient appointment for suspected cancers, patients seen at rapid access chest pain clinics within 14 days of GP referral, patients not admitted within 28 days of a cancelled operation, convenience and choice. Frimley Park's scores for clinical services showed strong performance throughout the year. But it failed to achieve the standard for GUM (genito-urinary medicine, or sexual health) clinics which requires patients to be sent an appointment within 48 hours of receiving a request. The Healthcare Commission did not inform hospitals of this standard until January 2006, although the standard applied from April 2005. Under the commission's strict rating system, any trust which fails to meet just one standard cannot be ranked as excellent for quality of services. According to the hospital, its performance in this area has since improved markedly. A second consultant and additional nurses have been appointed and 98 per cent of patients currently receive an appointment within 48 hours. The Royal Surrey was also awarded a score of "good" for the quality of its services. But as far as "use of resources" was concerned, the commission's view was that the NHS trust did not meet its financial targets and it therefore received an automatic score of "weak" under that heading. With the very existence of the hospital, and its A & E department in particular, under threat, the trust has been quick to point out that the financial failure relates to a deficit incurred three years ago, which had to be carried forward. Director of finance Paul Biddle explained: "It is disappointing that we have only been given a score of 'weak' for use of resources despite making a small surplus last year. The fact is that for the year 2005/06 we managed our finances very well" In a statement, the trust declared its rating for the quality of services to be "an outstanding result for the hospital, which puts it on a par with some of the leading local and specialist hospitals in the NHS, including such household names such as Guy's and St Thomas's NHS Foundation Trust". Only a handful (four per cent) of trusts throughout the NHS (and none in Kent, Surrey and Sussex) scored the higher "excellent" rating. The Royal Surrey's diagnostic services were given a score of "excellent". Since the reviews, diagnostics have become even better with the implementation of the PACS system. X-ray and scan results are available all around the hospital within minutes of the test being taken. Chief executive Nick Moberly said "We are extremely pleased with these results which demonstrate very clearly the high quality of care provided by the Royal Surrey. The Royal Surrey is an outstanding hospital and I have every confidence that it will continue to have a central role to play in the provision of healthcare for the people of Surrey in the future." The full results for all NHS trusts in England can be viewed on the Healthcare Commission's website at http://www.healthcarecommission.org.uk">www.healthcarecommission.org.uk.
