Healthcare services at prison improving, CQC says
GoogleHealthcare services for HMP Peterborough inmates have improved, inspectors have said.
In 2024, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) found the services run by Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (NHFT) did not have a good system for checking when patients missed their medication.
It also found the service had not met parts of the Health and Social Care Act 2008, which requires safe and effective care. It asked for an action plan to fix the problems.
The latest inspection in November, however, found the healthcare service had made improvements and was no longer in breach of regulations.
'Clear improvements'
HMP Peterborough is a Category B prison run by Sodexo and is the only prison in England that holds both men and women, although they are kept separate.
It currently holds about 360 women and 944 men.
At the latest inspection, CQC inspectors looked at how safe, effective, and well-led the healthcare service was.
They found clear improvements in how risks and problems were identified and managed.
It also found checks for prisoners detoxing from drugs and alcohol, now followed national guidance, and funding for additional mental health staff had been approved.
In addition, plans were in place to expand the pharmacy across other sites, offering benefits such as shared staff resources.
The watchdog also said healthcare and prison staff work well together, and healthcare staff had responded proactively to a recent rise in overdose emergencies at the prison.
They trained 336 prison staff to use Naloxone, a medicine that reverses opioid overdoses, and made sure it was available on every wing.
It also noted that an improved referral and triage system allowed more effective oversight of patients awaiting a mental health assessment.
Patient records now clearly showed when a medicine was given, and follow-ups for missed medicines had improved.
A spokesperson for NHFT said it was "dedicated to developing safe, quality services".
"Our team have worked incredibly hard to improve our processes, governance and care and they deserve huge credit for ensuring the service is now meeting regulations across all five of the CQC's key inspection areas: safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led."
HMP Peterborough has been contacted for comment.
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