A RECENT inspection by the Care Quality Commission – the independent regulator of health and social care in England – of Phyllis Tuckwell’s services, run from Beacon Centre in Guildford, has resulted in the charity being awarded a rating of ‘outstanding’.

Phyllis Tuckwell provides supportive and end of life care for adult patients and families in West Surrey and North East Hampshire, who are living with a terminal illness such as cancer.

Its staff and volunteers are based at the hospice in Farnham and the Beacon Centre in Guildford, but it offers care across the whole area, including in care homes and in patients’ own homes.

The inspection took place in January, when a CQC inspector visited the site for two days, to evaluate Phyllis Tuckwell’s Hospice Care at Home team, Clinical Nurse Specialists and Day Services.

The ‘outstanding’ rating was given based on five specific criteria, to discern whether the teams were safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led.

The inspector spoke to staff, sat in on meetings and attended the exercise and horticulture classes, and was very impressed with what she heard and saw.

Her report stated that patients “spoke of a service that was tailor-made for them, highly personalised and focussed on their individual needs and that of their families”.

The teams were safe in the way they practised and delivered care, with sufficient staff available to meet the needs of the patients, and patient risk and safety well managed.

“The managers showed outstanding leadership and they recognised, promoted and implemented innovative ways of working in order to provide a high-quality service,” continued the report.

It noted that staff were “involved in the development of working practice, listened to and supported”, and that caring relationships were noted between staff and patients, with many examples of dignity and respect shown for patients.

It was also noted that “people and their families were supported by kind and compassionate staff who went the extra mile to ensure people continued to have life enhancing experiences”.

Processes were in place for patient feedback and clear examples were shown of holistic care being offered, with evidence of service development in response to the growing community needs.

A positive attitude was noted, with strong leadership, staff clear about their roles, and systems in place to identify risk and monitor the service of care provided.

“We are delighted with the ‘outstanding’ rating which we have been awarded as a result of this inspection,” said Sarah Brocklebank, chief executive at Phyllis Tuckwell.

“It is a testament to the commitment and dedication of all of our staff and volunteers, and we are proud and privileged to support the local community in offering this highly important supportive and end-of-life care.

“We are also pleased that we received the report before our director of patient services, Clodagh Sowton, retired, as her hard work, along with that of the rest of the team, contributed to us achieving this outstanding rating.”