Springhill Hospice (Rochdale)

Updated 30 October 2023

Springhill Hospice (Rochdale) is a charitable organisation located in Rochdale, Lancashire and provides a range of hospice services for adults residing in the Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale area who are over 18 years of age and have a life limiting illness.

The hospice is purpose built and provides accommodation on the inpatient ward for up to 16 patients. The hospice also has a specialist palliative care community service, a day therapies service, and a hospice at home service. The hospice also provides a counselling and bereavement service for patients and their relatives. In addition, the hospice offers a 24 hour, 7 days per week telephone advice line for professionals, people who use the service and their families.

The hospice is close to public transport routes and is situated in a residential area of Rochdale, not too far from the town centre. It is set in large well-maintained gardens with adequate parking and clearly defined parking areas for disabled visitors. Services are free to people, with Springhill Hospice receiving some NHS funding and the remaining funds achieved through fundraising and charitable donations.

During the period between April 2022 and March 2023:

• There had been 291 admissions to the inpatient ward. There were 213 patient deaths and 72 patients discharged.
• There had been 734 patients admitted to the specialist community services. The community teams carried out 4,415 visits during this period. There were 531 patient deaths and 163 patients discharged from the service.
• There had been 274 patients admitted to the hospice at home service. The team carried out 1,815 visits.
• There had been 39 patients admitted to the night sitting service. The team carried out 359 night sits.
• There had been 56 patients admitted to the day therapy service.
• There had been 136 patient referred to the bereavement service and 99 patients referred to the counselling service.

Springhill Hospice (Rochdale) has been registered since 1 October 2010. The director of clinical services has been the registered manager for the service since 5 October 2022.

The service is registered to provide the regulated activity, treatment of disease, disorder or injury.

We previously inspected Springhill Hospice (Rochdale) during August 2016. The report was published in December 2016. We rated the hospice as good overall. We rated safe as requires improvement, effective and caring as outstanding and responsive and well-led as good following the inspection. We reported one regulatory breach for Regulation 12 safe care and treatment following the inspection relating to the safe management of medicines. We followed up to check if improvements had been made.

Updated 30 October 2023

Our rating of this location improved. We rated it as outstanding because:

• Staff always treated patients and relatives with compassion and kindness, respected their privacy and dignity, and took account of their individual needs. There was a strong, visible person-centred culture that was promoted by service leaders. Staff were highly motivated and inspired to offer care that was kind and promoted people’s dignity. Feedback from patients and those who are close to them was continually positive about the way staff treat people.
• Staff provided emotional support to patients, families and carers to minimise their distress. Staff recognised and respected the totality of people’s needs. They always took people’s personal, cultural, social and religious needs into account, and found innovative ways to meet them. People’s emotional and social needs were seen as being as important as their physical needs.
• Staff saw people, who were approaching end of life, and those close to them as active partners in their care. Staff were fully committed to working in partnership with patients, families and carers to make this a reality for each person.
• The service proactively planned its services and provided care in a way that took into account and, quickly and responsively, met the preferences and needs of local people and the communities it served. The service was inclusive and responsive in its tailored care to meet the individual and complex needs of its patients.
• Patients could access the specialist palliative care service in a way and at a time when they needed it. Waiting times from referral to achievement of preferred place of care and death were in line with good practice.
• The service had enough staff to care for patients and keep them safe. Staff had training in key skills, understood how to protect patients from abuse, and managed safety well. The service controlled infection risk well. Staff assessed risks to patients, acted on them and kept good care records. They managed medicines well. The service managed safety incidents well and learned lessons from them.
• Staff provided good care and treatment, gave patients enough to eat and drink, and gave them pain relief when they needed it. Managers monitored the effectiveness of the service and made sure staff were competent. Staff worked well together for the benefit of patients, supported them to make decisions about their care, and had access to good information. Key services were available seven days a week.
• Leaders ran services well using reliable information systems and supported staff to develop their skills. Staff understood the service’s vision and values, and how to apply them in their work. Staff felt respected, supported and valued. They were focused on the needs of patients receiving care. Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities. The service engaged well with patients and the community to plan and manage services and all staff were committed to improving services continually.

Updated 30 October 2023

The main service provided at this location was hospice services for adults.

We rated this service as outstanding overall, with a rating of outstanding for caring and responsive and a rating of good for safe, effective and being well-led.