We were welcomed into the Royal Albert Edward Hospital in Wigan, Leigh Infirmary, Richmond House and Bedford Care Home to talk to patients.
Patients and relatives told us that they have found staff to be caring, they have received good treatment, but the discharge experience left them disappointed - telling us that communication was lacking and that they felt ‘stuck’ in the system.
They experienced long waits for assessments for care at home or for transfer to other services. They felt the process was disjointed and they didn’t know who they had spoken to or what they were waiting for. There were minimal activities for patients, so they often felt bored.
Relatives expressed concern about Intermediate Care and Discharge to Assess services being mainly in Leigh, visiting could be difficult for those without transport.
There were multiple disjointed teams involved in discharge causing confusion, miscommunication and delays as patients felt no one-person or team was driving their discharge.
Our findings have been shared with local NHS leaders, who welcomed our findings and have already started to take action to make changes to the system. We are continuing to work with health and social care partners to improve the system for to reduce unnecessary time in hospital.
Our full report is now available by following the link here. ( https://healthwatchwiganandleigh.co.uk/delayed-discharge-the-report/)