Staffing numbers at an Essex hospital were not adequate to meet patient needs and shortfalls were compromising safety during a recent visit by Care Quality Commission inspectors.
The CQC said there “must be sufficient and appropriate staff available in medical services to provide care and treatment” at Southend University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
The trust must also take action to “ensure sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, competent, skilled and experienced nurses are available at all times on wards caring for palliative and end of life patients”, said the regulator in its report on the South East Essex provider.