London Ambulance Service taken out of special measures

Following their latest Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection, London Ambulance Service has been taken out of special measures and has been rated as ‘good’ overall for its services.

Having been placed on special measures on November 2015, the CQC have found that since then staff are regularly going above and beyond their expected duties to meet patient needs, with patients heralding staff commitment. This was highlighted in how the service helped treat those involved in the tragic major incidents in London last year, including the London Bridge and Westminster Bridge terrorist attacks.

The CQC also reported on a ‘well-led’ inspection where they found highly trained ambulance personnel and staff with specialist skills and expertise within areas including maternity and mental health. The inspectorate also noted examples of outstanding care from staff, especially in relation to engagement activities and in the Emergency Operations Centre, which fielded 1.9 million 999 calls last year.

Garrett Emmerson, trust chief executive, said: We have made some big changes in how we operate, but I want us to improve even further, with the aim of being rated ‘outstanding’ overall, in two years’ time. We will continue to focus on recruitment so that our emergency operations centres are fully staffed and our people who work in them have the working conditions they deserve every time they start their shift. And we have a robust strategy to increase our BME representation across the organisation doing as much as we can to reflect the diversity of the city we serve.

“We will not rest on our laurels, but today is about thanking staff for a job well done. We want to be a world-class ambulance service for a world-class city and the news today that we are no longer in special measures brings us much closer to realising that ambition.”

Professor Ted Baker, England’s Chief Inspector of Hospitals, said: “The improvements the leadership and staff of London Ambulance Service have made are especially commendable – and especially necessary – given the major incidents the Trust has responded to over the past year, including terrorist attacks and the Grenfell Tower tragedy.”

London Ambulance Service Chief Executive Garrett Emmerson, who joined the Trust in May last year, said: “I am delighted the dedication and hard work of staff throughout the Service has been recognised by the CQC. In particular, I want to thank staff for continuing to provide outstanding care. The CQC again gave London Ambulance Service the highest possible rating for the care we give to patients and I am extremely proud our incredible frontline staff have been recognised in this way.”