A report has been published by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following an inspection of some services at Ipswich Hospital.
East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT), which runs the hospital, acknowledges and welcomes the CQC’s feedback.
The inspection, in September 2025, focused on medical care (including older people’s care) and urgent and emergency services. The overall rating for these services is ‘requires improvement’.
While the report highlights several areas where improvements are needed, it also includes positive feedback. Inspectors recognised staff as caring and collaborative, as well as confident in raising concerns. Patients and families also described staff as “kind and friendly”.
Teams have been taking steps to address the recommendations since the inspection. This includes work to:
- Improve the experience for patients who, temporarily, receive care in a corridor space
- Increase training compliance
- Improve patient flow.
A new electronic patient record system launched across the Trust in October 2025. This will help to strengthen documentation and communication, which were highlighted by inspectors as areas for improvement.
Further improvements are being driven through the trust’s Fundamentals of Care programme, focusing on leadership and staff experience, patient safety, essential care, discharge planning and communication, and infection prevention and control.
Adrian Marr, Interim Chief Executive at ESNEFT. He said: “While we are disappointed with the overall rating, the report also reflects the dedication, compassion and professionalism shown by our staff.
“We recognise the areas where we must do better, and we are already acting on the CQC’s findings. I want to thank all our teams for their ongoing commitment and kindness.
“We will continue to work at pace to deliver the improvements our patients and their families rightly expect.”
ESNEFT Chief Nurse Catherine Morgan said: “Providing consistently safe, high‑quality and compassionate care is at the heart of everything we do.
“We take the CQC’s feedback extremely seriously but also acknowledge that the inspection reflects a moment in time. Our teams have already taken significant steps forward since the visit. We remain fully committed to building on that progress.”
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