Southend University Hospital

On this page

• Overview
• Kindness, compassion and dignity
• Treating people as individuals
• Independence, choice and control
• Responding to people’s immediate needs
• Workforce wellbeing and enablement

Women and birthing people described the staff as kind, caring, and friendly, with many rating their experience as excellent. They reported that staff were approachable and accommodating to requests. Staff followed policies to ensure confidentiality and took time to interact with women, birthing people, and their families in a respectful and considerate manner, addressing needs quickly and efficiently. The latest CQC national maternity survey results, published in February 2024, indicated that the trust was slightly below the national average in terms of how women felt they were treated with kindness and understanding after the birth of their baby. The trust scored 7.9, compared to the national average of 8.4.

This service scored 70 (out of 100) for this area. Find out what we look at when we assess this area and How we calculate these scores.

Women and birthing people described staff as kind, caring, friendly, and thorough, with many rating their experience as good or excellent. Staff took time to explain things clearly to women, birthing people, and their families. However, 2 women felt that more clarity and communication were needed regarding the reasons for appointments and the rationale for additional scans. Women and birthing people told us they were given time to ask any questions and staff were accommodating to requests and constantly checked to ensure they were okay.

Staff took account of women and birthing people preferences, wishes, personal histories, backgrounds, and potential in planning their care. Staff took time to interact with women and those close to them in a respectful and considerate way. We observed staff responding to the needs of women and birthing people quickly and efficiently including when they were in pain, discomfort, or distress. Women, birthing people, and their families experiencing social deprivation had access to support through the lottery funded ‘A Better Start Southend’ initiative. This service was part of 1 of the 5 better start areas funded by the National Lottery Community Fund.

Staff followed policies to ensure women's care and treatment remained confidential. Staff treated women, birthing people, and their families with compassion and kindness, respecting their privacy and dignity whilst considering their individual needs. We observed that staff maintained dignity throughout care, treatment, and procedures by being discreet and responsive. Curtains and doors were closed to protect privacy and staff knocked before entering rooms.

We did not look at Treating people as individuals during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

We did not look at Independence, choice and control during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

We did not look at Responding to people’s immediate needs during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.

We did not look at Workforce wellbeing and enablement during this assessment. The score for this quality statement is based on the previous rating for Caring.