Sickle Cell Society calls for substantial improvements following CQC report into North Middlesex University Hospital Trust

The Sickle Cell Society is calling for substantial improvements in sickle cell care across the country, following the report from the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

In August 2021, the CQC carried out an unannounced focused inspection of North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust after the preventable death of sickle cell patient, Evan Nathan Smith in 2019.

The CQC has told North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust to make improvements, citing issues such as significant delays in administering pain relief, the use of some out-of-date information and policies, and insufficient staffing, training and equipment.

Although the report is specific to North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust, many of the problems are experienced by sickle cell patients in hospitals throughout the country.

In November 2021, the Sickle Cell Society and the Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia All-Party Parliamentary Group (SCTAPPG), produced their own report: ‘No One’s Listening: an inquiry into avoidable deaths and failures of care for sickle cell patients in secondary care’.

The groundbreaking inquiry, led by Rt Hon Pat McFadden MP, found “serious care failings” in acute services and evidence of attitudes underpinned by racism as well as much overlap with issues mentioned in the CQC inspection report for North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust.

The findings of both reports show the significant difficulties that patients with sickle cell have to face. The Sickle Cell Society is calling on NHS England commissioners and acute NHS Trusts to make rapid and significant improvement to sickle cell services, addressing the failings across the country and drawing on the findings and recommendations from the SCTAPPG report as well as those from the CQC report.

“The findings from the CQC inspection report are deeply disappointing but unsurprising. Our own report has shown that sickle cell patients around the country have had similar experiences and we hope that this depth of evidence will lead to urgent and substantial improvements, so that cases like Evan Nathan Smith and many others will not happen again.” – John James OBE, Chief Executive, Sickle Cell Society

The CQC report can be found here: https://www.cqc.org.uk/location/RAPNM/inspection-summary#care

The SCTAPPG ‘No One’s Listening’ report can be found here: https://www.sicklecellsociety.org/no-ones-listening/