Southampton General Hospital: 11 windows easily unlocked, CQC finds

CQC inspectors looked at window restrictors in patient accessible areas in four wards of the hospital in Tremona Road.

The CQC declined to confirm which wards were inspected.

Inspectors found that some window restrictors had visible rust, which ‘may reduce the ability to withstand reasonable force’.

It was also found that not all restrictors were tamperproof.

A total of 19 windows in semi-private areas that were accessible by patients, such as bathrooms and quiet spaces, were looked at during the unannounced inspection on January 19.

Of these windows, 11 could be opened.

It was noted that all 11 windows that opened had double restrictors fitted in line with guidance.

But six of these sets of window restrictors were not tamperproof, meaning they could be unlocked, and windows opened beyond the recommended 100mm or less.

This posed a risk to staff, patients, and visitors.

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The hospital’s previous rating of ‘requires improvement’ remains in place.

Despite this, inspectors found that when window faults were reported, these were resolved in an appropriate timeframe.

And estates staff checked annually to ensure windows openings did not exceed 100mm in line with guidance.

The report told the University Hospital Southampton Trust board they must have oversight regarding window safety across all trust sites.

The trust was also instructed to use a that a clear and documented process to complete a visual inspection of window safety and that this is consistently applied.

Speaking on the outcome of the inspection, a spokesperson from the trust said: “Providing an environment that supports the delivery of safe and effective patient care is our priority at UHS, and so we will implement any changes needed to continually improve our standards.

“We have received the recent CQC report and are addressing the recommendations within it.”