Community healthcare in Hounslow and Richmond must improve, inspectors have said, following a mixed review.

Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare (HRCH) NHS Trust was rated "requires improvement", the second lowest of four possible grades, by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The watchdog deemed community health inpatient services at Teddington Memorial Hospital to be "inadequate" in the report, which was published on Tuesday (September 6).

But end-of-life care and children's services in the two boroughs were both judged to be "good" - the second highest score available - following an inspection in March.

The report was particularly critical of care at Teddington Memorial Hospital, with concerns raised about staffing shortages and inadequate equipment.

Staff not washed until lunchtime

Inspectors said pressure on staff meant patients would often not be washed until lunchtime, and even the "minimum level" of basic resuscitation equipment was not available for emergency use.

However, they acknowledged that patients "consistently achieved positive outcomes" following their stay at the unit.

Patricia Wright, the trust's chief executive, said it had already taken strides to improve services since the inspection, particularly when it came to staffing shortages.

She said the vacancy rate had reduced from 21% at the end of February to 16% at the end of July, despite a national shortage of qualified professionals making recruitment "challenging".

She said she was glad inspectors had recognised the many areas of good practice within the trust but recognised there was work to be done.

'We have worked quickly to address issues'

"I want to re-assure patients and local people that we have worked quickly to ensure the main issues identified at our inpatient unit at Teddington Memorial Hospital are being addressed," she said.

"Since the inspection we have carried out immediate actions to resolve the safety issues on the wards – around staffing and equipment.

"Improving the quality of care we provide continues to be a priority for the trust and we look forward to continuing to work with staff and patients to ensure that we provide care and services that we and our families would want to use."

The trust provides healthcare in the community, outside of hospitals and GP surgeries, across the two boroughs and for some people living farther afield.

Among a host of services, it provides health visitors for families with young children, occupational therapy to aid recuperation, and some walk-in health care at the Hounslow Urgent Care Centre run by West Middlesex Hospital.

You can view the report in full on the Care Quality Commission website.

How did the trust perform?

OVERALL: Requires improvement

SAFE: Requires improvement

EFFECTIVE: Requires improvement

CARING: Requires improvement

RESPONSIVE: Requires improvement

WELL-LED: Requires improvement

COMMUNITY HEALTH INPATIENT SERVICES: Inadequate

COMMUNITY HEALTH SERVICES FOR ADULTS: Requires improvement

COMMUNITY HEALTH SERVICES FOR CHILDREN, YOUNG PEOPLE AND FAMILIES: Good

URGENT CARE SERVICES: Requires improvement

END OF LIFE CARE: Good