Patients, and their loved ones and carers, encouraged to give feedback to help improve Trust’s services

Patients and their loved ones and carers are encouraged to give feedback to Medway NHS Foundation Trust so it can improve its services and ensure it delivers the very best of care to patients at all times.

The Trust’s patient Friends and Family Test (FFT) provides people with an opportunity to leave anonymous honest feedback about the care and treatment either they or their friend or relative, or the person they care for, have received at Medway Maritime Hospital. The questions are short and simple and the survey takes no more than a few minutes to complete.

Jayne Black, the Trust’s Chief Executive, said: “We are committed to putting patients first and providing the very best of care to the communities of Medway and Swale.

“Only by listening to the views of patients, and their friends and family, can we truly understand what is working well, and where we need to do better so we can improve patient experience and the hospital environment for everyone. Patient feedback is so important because it allows us to make the changes that are important to those who access our services now and in the future.”

In fact it is thanks to the Friends and Family Test that a pilot designed to help inpatients get a better night’s sleep during their stay at the hospital is about to be rolled out on four wards.

Jayne said: “Rest and sleep are vital to the patient’s recovery. Through the FFT noise at night was identified as being a high contributor to negative feedback on some wards. Following discussions the same issue was identified on other wards too.

“To help try and combat the issue, over the coming weeks, staff on Phoenix, Arethusa, Bronte and Nelson wards will offer single use ear plugs and eye masks to patients, after they have undergone a risk assessment.

“They will also be handed a leaflet when they arrive on the ward with top tips on how both staff and patients can help keep the ward quiet and respect other people’s need to rest and sleep. Each ward will also hold a stock of herbal, decaffeinated and milky drinks that patients can ask for too.

“If it proves to be successful we’ll be looking to roll it out to all wards so others can also benefit. Had it not been for the FFT we wouldn’t have necessarily known there were noise issues or looked at what we could do to try and resolve it so it just goes to show that the FFT is a really important tool for the Trust.”

The Trust has been working hard on patient FFT responses this year as a priority under the new Patient First improvement programme introduced last year. This ensures the Trust focuses on fewer priorities that will have a big impact on patient care and quality more quickly.

Evonne Hunt, the Trust’s Chief Nursing Officer, said: “One of our objectives under Patient First is for 95 per cent of patients completing the FFT to recommend us as a place to receive care. This is because our patients are the ones that know best if we are getting our care right. Currently 90.1 per cent of patients say they would recommend us.”

Posters and pull-up banners featuring a QR code that people can scan with their phone are now on display in both clinical and public areas including the hospital’s Emergency Department and outpatient areas. In addition, staff have a QR code sticker on the back of their staff ID badge that they can show patients to scan.

Evonne added: “Once you scan the QR code on the poster or the pull-up banner you simply need to click on the link that appears. You’ll then be taken to the FFT where you then need to click on the drop down menu to select the area you or your loved one received care or accessed one of our services.

“It is completely anonymous and I would encourage as many people as possible to complete it and to be as honest as they can about their experiences of our services, staff, and procedures. There is also a section where you can make suggestions for improvements. We really do welcome feedback as it allows us to make the changes that matter to them, and in turn helps to improve the experience for everyone.”

If you have any queries about the FFT, or if you have any issues accessing the links on the website or on the pull-up banners or posters on display in the hospital, please email medwayft.qualityandgovernance@nhs.net