Overview
- The CQC kept urgent and emergency services at "requires improvement", lowered medical care from "good", and issued a warning notice to ESNEFT.
- Inspectors reported patients in A&E waited up to 20 hours, with triage targets missed and inadequate monitoring for deterioration.
- Findings included poor hand hygiene, incomplete documentation of consent and mental capacity, and some out-of-date training.
- Staffing shortages on medical wards and delayed discharges reduced bed capacity, limiting moves to the most appropriate wards.
- The trust cites actions underway, including an Epic electronic patient record launched in October 2025, active recruitment, and interim leadership under Adrian Marr.