Britain offers some of the best healthcare in the world. Not only is the NHS a national treasure, but there are first-class private hospitals throughout the country too. Despite this, though, there are hospitals that are below par in the UK too. It can be hard to know what kind of service your local hospital offers until you need to use their facilities for whatever reason.
When you’re looking to move house, you’ll have a set priority list of the different amenities you are looking for. Whether it’s a good bus route, local school or nearby shopping centre, they can all have an impact on your decision to buy a house or not. Buying a house is a major decision and you need to review the local area as much as you evaluate the houses you are looking around.
Excellent medical services often play a big part in how appealing the location of a house is. There’s little worse than having to wait weeks to be seen by a doctor or worrying that you won’t receive the help you need in an emergency. Families with elderly relatives or young children are even more inclined to wonder about whether their local health service can offer the best care possible.
In this article, we’ve compiled a list of some of the best hospitals in the country based on patient satisfaction, the state of the facilities and an overall performance review.
Which cities have the best hospitals?
Unsurprisingly, London has some of the best hospitals in the whole of the UK. The Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children is world-renowned and offers excellent facilities, such as the UK’s largest centre for children’s heart surgery. Parents travel from all over the country so that their child can have treatment in leading facilities performed by highly trained medical professionals.
Middlesbrough in North Yorkshire is another location that has some of the best hospitals in the UK in terms of waiting times. On average, over 98% of patients were seen within four hours in 2021. This means that the hospital more than meets the NHS’ target 95% of patients to be seen within the timeframe target.
Continue reading to find out which other cities have enviable NHS hospitals, as well as good private medical centres.
Which cities have the best A&E department?
Fryatt hospital in Harwich, along with Putnoe Medical Centre Walk-In Centre in Bedford (both in the East of England) saw 100% of patients seen within the four-hour timeframe. This rapid pace of medical care means that patients are seen and their health issues quickly dealt with before any further complications can arrive.
There are a number of other factors that determine what makes a good Accident and Emergency department. Luton and Dunstable University Hospital has been voted Good/Outstanding by governing hospital boards due to the high leadership standard. The hospital is also in the process of raising funds to have a helipad built on-site so that it can receive patients from the air. This will mean that injured or sick patients are seen swiftly, which could lead to an increase in life-saving treatment getting administered.
One of the most logical ways to improve a facility is to review previous patients and try to think of how to improve efficiency. This is exactly what Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust hospital has been doing in the past five years. The medical staff review the conditions that they are frequently seeing, as well as age groups and other important details in order to enhance their A&E department.
Wales’ best A&E department in terms of waiting time is located in the Royal Glamorgan Hospital. Around 85.5% are seen within four hours or less, which is the highest percentage in the country.
Where is the best NHS hospital located?
One of the most innovative NHS hospitals in the UK is the Royal Marsden Hospital in Kensington and Chelsea. The hospital is a leader in the cancer treatment and research field and was the first in the world to specifically dedicate itself to cancer treatment. It is partnered with The Institute of Cancer Research, which allows the hospital access to newly developed treatment and cancer programmes.
Keeping instruments clean is incredibly important in any medical centre. Reading’s Royal Berkshire hospital has one of the country’s leading services for the decontamination and sterilisation of medical instruments and devices. This significantly reduces infection rates and helps ensure that patients are kept safe before, during and after surgery and treatment. The hospital is ranked number 67 out of the world, which is the highest-ranking that a hospital in the UK is placed.
Newcastle’s Freeman Hospital offers a wide range of treatments that have become highly regarded in their individual fields. Surgeons at this hospital specialise in procedures such as hip and knee replacements, whilst the fitting of digital hearing aids are also of a high standard at the Freeman Hospital.
There are hospitals that specialise in certain treatments and illnesses all over the country, so it’s worth speaking with a health care professional to see if you could benefit from relocating to a particular city for a specific NHS hospital.
Where is the best private hospital located?
Nuffield Health is the UK’s largest healthcare charity that operates privately. In 2019, the organisation was named Best Private Hospital of The Year in the Health Investor Awards. Whilst there are 29 sites across England, the only Nuffield Health Centre in Scotland is located in Glasgow. Wales’ Nuffield Health centres are based in Cardiff and Pontyclun.
In 2018, the Fitzwilliam Hospital, which is based in Peterborough, won the Private Healthcare UK award for Best Hospital Full Service Private Hospital in East Anglia. It has received major refurbishments over the last few years, especially to the reception area and physiotherapy department. This level of funding can vastly improve a patient’s whole experience within a hospital and could even help to improve their treatment and recovery time.
London’s leading private hospital is often considered to be the Weymouth Street Hospital, which is owned by the Phoenix Hospital Group. Having received 12 awards since it first opened in 2010, this luxurious boutique hospital combines comfort with some of the leading doctors in the country.
Which cities have the worst hospitals?
The Care Quality Commission is an independent regulator of health and social care in England. It regularly reviews healthcare facilities and services to see at what level they are functioning. As of 2021, 22 hospitals were rated inadequate by the Care Quality Commission, including hospitals such as Cygnet Views in Matlock, Derbyshire.
Hospitals are reviewed based on factors such as safety, care and effectiveness in treatment. For example, the village of Rudyard’s John Munroe hospital (located in Staffordshire) was found to be inadequately led and unresponsive to feedback and suggestions for improvement. These are two fundamental issues that can severely impact the quality of treatment that a patient receives.
Northampton has two hospitals that feature on the Care Quality Commission’s list of inadequate hospitals – Broomhill and St Andrew’s Healthcare. Whilst the latter does need improvement in a number of areas, it is rated Good solely in the Responsive category. Broomhill, on the other hand, was marked as Inadequate in all categories except Responsive, where it was rated that it ‘needs improvement’.
Summary
London has the most award-winning hospitals that are leaders in their fields. This includes Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, St Thomas’ Hospital and Institute of Cancer Research Royal Hospital.
The Royal Marsden Hospital is a leading centre for cancer research and treatment, especially since it has partnered with The Institute of Cancer Research. It uses cutting edge technology combined with innovative medications to help patients beat the illness.
Luton and Dunstable University Hospital has won awards stating that it has an impressive Accident and Emergency department. The Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust hospital has also been commended for its facilities as staff are constantly reviewing the care they offer to make sure it is of a high standard.
Some of the worst hospitals in the country (as record by the Care Quality Commission) include Cygnet Views in Matlock, the John Munroe hospital in Rudyard and St Andrew’s Healthcare in Northampton. Factors that hinder these hospitals include poor waiting times for treatment, staff that don’t go above and beyond in their care and staff that are unresponsive to feedback and change.
