We are proud to announce that following an inspection undertaken in October, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated the maternity service at Darent Valley Hospital, part of Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust, as good.
The inspection took place as part of the CQC’s national maternity inspection programme, which aims to provide an updated overview of the quality and safety of maternity care across England.
The inspection found:
- Our staff worked well together for the benefit of women and understood how to protect women from abuse.
- Safety incidents were well managed and used to drive learning.
- Our leaders ran services well using reliable information systems, and they ensured staff were competent and supported to develop their skills.
- Staff felt respected, supported and valued
- Staff completed and updated risk assessments for each woman and took action to remove or minimise risks.
- Staff were clear about their roles and accountabilities.
- The culture within maternity services supported staff to develop and fostered a culture of learning and improvement.
- The service engaged well with women and the community to plan and manage services, and staff were committed to continually improving services.
You can read the full report here.
A spokeswoman from our Trust said: “It is always very helpful to have an external review of our service and we welcome the CQC report. The fact that the report stated how women and babies generally receive good care in a well-led maternity service is reassuring. Nevertheless, it is the areas that the CQC have recognised for improvement that we will now be making our main priority. Our staff are committed to delivering a high standard of care to local women and their families every day of the year and this rating is a positive endorsement of the care we are providing in DGT.”
We would like to thank our Maternity department for their outstanding care they continue to provide and their unrelenting dedication to improving the service for our community.