A new report has praised the response of frontline staff at Glasgow’s flagship hospital towards pressure faced during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The inspection by Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS), which took place in March, happened at a time when the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) had the highest number of Covid patients in Scotland.
Despite staff absences, and significant demand for A&E and bed capacity, the report found overall patient satisfaction remained high.
HIS reported that some areas were working with a “less than optimum level of staffing” due to the absences, though the majority of patients described their care at the hospital as very good.
The hospital continued to adhere to the Covid regulations that were in place at the time, and the publication cited strong leadership which helped in supporting the delivery of safe, patient-centred care.
Donna Maclean, head of service for HIS, said: “At the time of inspection, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital campus, like much of NHS Scotland, was experiencing a significant range of pressures associated with Covid-19, including increased hospital admissions, increased waiting times in emergency departments and reduced staff availability.
“During our inspection, we were impressed with the way lead nurses, managers and chief nurses and the multidisciplinary team worked together to improve safety and support staff.
“We observed the impact of the increased pressures across the hospital such as waiting times in the emergency department and other admission areas in addition to shortages of available staff.
“Despite this, we observed senior managers and multidisciplinary teams working hard to alleviate the pressures and we saw staff in clinical areas working hard to ensure the patients were well cared for and their care needs were met.”
Jane Grant, chief executive for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, said: “Despite unprecedented pressure across the service at a time where staff were looking after around 700 Covid-19 patients across NHSGGC, including one third in the QEUH alone, staff continued to show the utmost professionalism and compassion in treating patients, while also working exceptionally well with each other to make very tough decisions on an hourly basis.
“The challenges posed by Covid during that period cannot be understated and it’s thanks to all staff at the QEUH that we’ve been able to successfully weather the storm and continue to deliver high-quality care to patients.
“However, while the report highlights these positives in the context of the wider pressures caused by Covid-19, we accept that there were also some improvements which could be made in some areas of the hospital.
“As such, we can confirm we have now acted upon all of these, with improvements either complete or with an ongoing monitoring plan in place.”