Dorset County Hospital is offering some of the best cancer care in the country according to a national patient survey.
The results of the National Cancer Patient Experience Survey for 2013/14 put Dorset County Hospital in the top 20% of acute hospitals in the country for many of the areas assessed.
Dorset County Hospital also has the best set of results in Dorset compared with other local acute hospitals.
Consultant oncologist Dr Richard Osborne said: “These excellent survey results are another example of the success achieved by Dorset County Hospital, which has been consistently demonstrated over the past 10 years.
“Similar levels of high performance can be seen in the cancer patient survival figures for West Dorset where we are in the top 10% in England for low mortality rates.”
Chief Executive of Dorset County Hospital Patricia Miller added: “Our multi-disciplinary teams work extremely well together to ensure that every aspect of cancer patients’ care is the very best it can be. The experience of the patient is very much at the centre of everything they do and these excellent results reflect the commitment of those teams.
“Despite these very positive results we are not complacent and the survey has highlighted some areas where we can make further improvements.
“Our cancer teams are already working with the Macmillan sponsored Experience Based Design project which uses patient feedback to make practical improvements to the care we provide.”
Across the country, 153 acute hospitals took part in the survey, with 262 questionnaires returned for Dorset County Hospital, representing a 69% response rate. The national response rate was 64%. Dorset County Hospital’s results were in the top 20% in 27 areas.
Areas where Dorset County Hospital received particular praise from patients included:
· Patients felt they were seen as soon as was necessary after a referral from their GP
· Patients had confidence in their doctors and nurses
· Patients were treated with privacy and dignity
· Patients were given sufficient support by staff
· Hospital staff gave complete explanation of the purpose of tests
· Patients were given information about their type of cancer and support groups
Areas highlighted as requiring improvement included patients not being given the name of their cancer nurse specialist, patients not seeing information about cancer research in the hospital and not being told about getting free prescriptions. All these areas have been addressed.
