Hospital chiefs await new inquiry findings

REVIEW FOLLOWS PREVIOUS CQC DOWNGRADE IN 2024

- By DANIEL HOLLAND

HOSPITAL bosses in Newcastle are awaiting the results of a fresh review, almost two years on from a highly critical report.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) downgraded the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust from ‘outstanding’ to ‘requires improvement’ in 2024, with the watchdog demanding change after its inspectors found bullying complaints, concerns for patient safety and a “significant deterioration” in leadership.

The trust, which runs the Freeman Hospital and Royal Victoria Infirmary, has since made a series of management changes as part of an action plan for improvements.

While inspectors had been expected to return this year, city health chiefs told councillors on Thursday that Newcastle Hospitals had “moved down the CQC risk profile” and that a reinspection is not likely in the near future.