Kirkcaldy’s Victoria Hospital has been given a relatively clean bill of health in a new report compiled by the Healthcare Environment Inspectorate (HEI).
The HEI report, which has been published following an unannounced inspection of various areas of the hospital on November 30 and December 1, commended the overall cleanliness of the hospital environment and noted a number of areas of good practice.
Staff compliance with standard infection prevention control precautions was praised, while the cleanliness of equipment used in patient care was similarly noted as a positive.
Nursing staff were also hailed for their documentation for patients with Clostridium difficile infection, with inspectors singling that aspect out for comment.
However, the HEI has called on NHS Fife to ensure that, when infection risks to or from the patient are identified, all communication with the patients or their representatives is recorded in the patient record.
A total of 17 patients were interviewed by inspectors over the two-day inspection and 16 patient questionnaires completed — all of which expressed the view that ward areas were suitably clean.
Paul Hawkins, NHS Fife chief executive, said the health board had acknowledged what was included in the report and said action would be taken to address areas where improvement could be made.
“We are pleased that the report published by the Healthcare Environment Inspectorate commends the cleanliness of the hospital and recognises the diligence of staff who work tirelessly to ensure our patients are cared for in a clean, high quality and safe environment,” he stressed.
“We note also that there is scope to improve written documentation of conversations with patients about infection prevention and control.
“NHS Fife is committed to continually improving the standards of care we provide and measures are currently being put in place imminently to address this.”
Inspectors monitored a number of areas in the hospital, including the maternity unit, the medical high dependency unit, ward 22 (renal), ward 23 (cardiology), ward 42 (stroke), ward 43 (respiratory) and ward 53 (surgical).
In addition to the requirement regarding completion of patient records, the HEI asked NHS Fife to ensure that medical staff follow own process for identifying and managing the severity of Clostridium difficile infection by competing a medical management form.
The health board was also asked to ensure that single use patient toiletries are discarded when no longer required by the patient.
