The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (Royal Devon) has ranked joint second nationally for inpatient satisfaction, alongside three other acute and general combined NHS Trusts.

The findings come from the latest Care Quality Commission (CQC) inpatient survey, which asked patients to say what they thought about their stay in hospital in 2022. The Royal Devon scored above the average score for all Trusts for 47 of the 51 questions.

The survey results reveal that patients at the Royal Devon found their experience of the ward they were staying on to be ‘better than expected’. It also shows when it came to being treated with respect, and being provided with information about procedures the Trust performed ‘somewhat better than expected’.

Carolyn Mills, Chief Nursing Officer at the Royal Devon, said: “I'm delighted to see that when patients are here, we are not only meeting their expectations but exceeding them and I want to commend the wonderful staff here at the Royal Devon for all their hard work and dedication in delivering person centred care despite the operational challenges they face.

“To be placed so highly when compared to other Trusts is something we can be proud of, and I would like to thank each one of our patients who took the time to complete this survey. Having service user feedback is essential in helping us provide better care, and with that deliver better health outcomes for our patients.”

In total, 591 Royal Devon inpatients responded to the survey, the response rate was 49%, higher than the national response rate of 40%.

There was only one question, out of a total of 51 that the CQC asked, where the Royal Devon patients said their experiences were worse than expected. This was in response to a question about time spent on the waiting list before admission.

In the report the CQC summarised the findings for the Royal Devon as:

Where patient experience is best:

• Food outside set meal times: patients being able to get hospital food outside of set meal times, if needed
• Help with eating: patients being given enough help from staff to eat meals, if needed
• Dietary needs or requirements: patients being offered food that met any dietary needs or requirements they had
• After the operation or procedure: patients being given an explanation from staff of how their operation or procedure went
• Changing wards during the night: staff explaining the reason for patients needing to change wards during the night

Where the patient experience could improve:

• Waiting to be admitted: patients feeling that they waited the right amount of time on the waiting list before being admitted to hospital
• Noise from other patients: patients not being bothered by noise at night from other patients
• Feedback on care: patients being asked to give their views on the quality of their care
• Further health or social care services: patients being given information about further health or social care services they may need after leaving hospital
• Support from health or social care services: patients being given enough support from health or social care services to help them recover or manage their condition after leaving hospital

The full survey results can be read here: www.cqc.org.uk/publications/surveys/adult-inpatient-survey