Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust has been rated as Outstanding.
The trust provides a range of services, such as community hospitals, including Spalding’s Johnson, minor injury units, out of hours GP services and community nurses.
It employs 1,987 staff and the recent inspection gave it an overall rating of outstanding.
“We rated safe, effective and caring as good and responsive and well-led as outstanding. We rated three core services as good overall and one as outstanding,” said the report.
“Due to the widespread workforce, dispersed teams and extensive geography the trust had been innovative in its approach to staff engagement. The trust had created a tube map, which was accessible to all staff,” the report adds.
The report also covers community nursing and therapy services as well as outpatient clinics, including those for leg ulcers or occupational therapy.
Inspectors visited seven sites, including the Johnson Community Hospital at short notice.
The team spoke to 81 members of staff and observed the care of 55 patients and spoke with eight relatives.
The service was rated as good and inspectors said: “Staff understood their roles and responsibilities regarding safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
“Staff had received appropriate levels of safeguarding training and could tell us about examples of where they had identified and raised concerns.”
The report also added that staff demonstrated good practice regarding hand hygiene and infection control.
“Staff of different kinds worked together as a team to benefit patients. Nurses, therapists and support staff worked with professionals from other services to provide good care. Staff had the right skills and knowledge to safely care for patients.”
The community health inpatient service serves a population of around 740,000 and provides a range of services.
Between March 2017 and February 2018 there were 1,007 inpatient admissions and the inspection was not announced.
“Feedback from patients and people close to them was consistently positive. Those we spoke with felt that staff often went the extra mile and the care they received exceeded their expectations,” the report said.
“Staff were highly motivated and treated patients with respect, privacy and dignity at all times,” it added.
The service’s responsiveness was also praised and the inspection said the trust had adopted a proactive approach to understanding the needs and preferences of patients.
“Urgent and emergency care service teams were aware of the needs of their local population. Patients could access services when they needed,” the report said.
