Inspectors from the Care and Quality Commission have criticised staff at the Oldham Royal A&E department for failing to follow Covid safety rules.
According to the report failed to stick to social distancing guidance, good hand hygiene and appropriate use of personal protective equipment (PPE).
They also saw relative being directed to the urgent treatment centre without any Covid screening.
The hospital’s emergency department was downgraded from a rating of good to requiring improvement following the visit last November
Inspecfors wrote to the Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust afterwards “because we were concerned about the potential significant risk of harm to patients”.
Within days of the inspection, the leadership team at our Oldham Care Organisation took immediate action to rectify some of the issues highlighted, where this could be done at speed.
Libby McManus, Group Chief Nursing Officer & Director of Infection Prevention and Control for the Northern Care Alliance NHS Group, which runs The Royal Oldham Hospital , said:
“On the day the CQC inspected our Emergency Department in November last year, the inspection team saw some infection control practice which is neither acceptable nor our usual high standard and for this we are sorry to our patients and public.
“We pride ourselves on the care we provide and take the safety of our patients and staff extremely seriously. We did not wait for this report to be published. I want to reassure those who depend on our services that immediate and decisive action was taken to address the areas of improvement required. We continue to monitor and manage the small yet significant detail of all our practice.
“Our teams have used this report to make the necessary improvements and share learning across our organisation. We are committed to listening to our patients and staff when it comes to continuing to improve the safety and quality of care in our hospitals. I am encouraged that the CQC found that our staff felt respected, supported and valued and had an open culture where they felt they could raise any concerns. We continue to do everything we can to support our people.
“The CQC’s inspection has highlighted the significant challenges and demands our staff and staff right across the NHS are under in dealing with not only high attendances, but also the impact the pandemic is having on our staff and services. We remain focused on protecting and separating Covid patients, avoiding overcrowding in A&E, and dealing with the challenge in the reduction in bed capacity due to the need for additional Covid-19 beds.
“Our work with our local health and care partners in primary care and in social care continues to focus on improving how patients flow in and out of our hospital. We must support people in the community to avoid being admitted to hospital wherever possible.
“People should continue to feel safe and confident in accessing care and treatment at our hospital services.”
