It’s safe to say that Lynn’s hospital had faced major struggles in recent years – but what caused it to crash? And is it terminal?
The Lynn News spoke to MPs, a whistleblower and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital itself to find out.
“THE RANKING IN BLACK AND WHITE”
Last week, it was revealed that out of the 134 acute trust hospitals in the country, the QEH sat right at the bottom as the UK’s worst facility.
The news shocked many, with Lynn News readers saying they felt “failed” and others calling it “embarrassing”.
The league tables saw the hospital handed a score of 3.25 – the highest-rated was 1.39 – based on finances, patient access to care, and wait times for operations and A&E.
Chris Bown, interim executive managing director of the QEH, described the result as “extremely disappointing” and admitted that immediate steps needed to be taken.
“While we knew it reflected areas where we had fallen short, seeing the ranking in black and white is still difficult,” he said.
Professor Lesley Dwyer, chief executive of Norfolk and Waveney University Hospitals Group, which includes the QEH, agreed and said: “Clearly, we want our hospitals to be rated higher, much higher, in the new National Outcomes Framework.
“They are not where we want them to be, and we owe it to our population, patients and staff to make rapid improvements. We are determined to do so.”
WHERE DID IT START?
The QEH website states it currently has 8,598 steel and timber props holding up its roof, which is made of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC).
Built in the 1980, it was designed to last only for 30 years – but now it is 15 years overdue.
Significant problems rose in 2019, and to add to the pressure, the facility received a scathing CQC review, which saw it rated ‘inadequate’.
After lockdown, calls came in for Matt Hancock, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care at the time, to come and see the props for himself.
His visit took place in June 2021, when the hospital had just 200 props in place. He said the situation was “very serious and needs addressing.”
The publicity did not stop there, as the following week Jeremy Corbyn, who was leader of the Labour Party, attended a rally in The Walks, calling the crisis “a disgrace”.
Dozens of protestors could be seen storming down the paths singing ‘QEH is falling down’ to the tune of London Bridge.
THEN THERE WAS HOPE
In May 2023, the QEH was handed the news it had been waiting for.
The Government confirmed it would be added to the New Hospital Programme – an initiative launched in 2020 to build 40 new facilities across the country by 2030.
However, the good news did not last for long, as the following year, when Labour took over, the plans were thrown into doubt as Chancellor Rachel Reeves looked for ways to fill what has been described as a £20billion financial “black hole” in public spending.
By September, the hospital was confirmed to be “out of scope” of the review due to the urgency of the situation.
HOW DID THE HOLD-UP AFFECT THE QEH?
The backwards and forwards concerned many for some time, as the promise of a better hospital was something that residents had been hearing for years, and both of West Norfolk’s MPs pledged to make it happen during the 2024 election.
And although the £1.4bn was made available for the rebuild back in April, each politician feels the stalling of the project may have contributed to the hospital’s decline.
South West Norfolk Labour MP Terry Jermy said: “The QEH should have been added to the New Hospital Programme years ago by the previous government, and it is scandalous that false promises were made for so long.
“Delivering the modern facilities our NHS needs to provide the highest quality care needs to be a priority, but to turn things around, we need to go much further than just addressing bricks and mortar.”
North West Norfolk Conservative MP James Wild said: “Better facilities help deliver better outcomes, and dedicated QEH staff work in a hospital that is not fit for purpose.”
“UNDERVALUED” AND “OVERLOOKED”
A former employee for the QEH, who asked not to be named, told the Lynn News that part of the reason the QEH fell to the bottom was due to money being “thrown away” on consultants when it could have been invested directly into patient care.
“To be ranked worst in the country is really demoralising to all the staff, and it shouldn’t be that way,” he said.
He claimed that those consultants – employed on six-figure salaries – came from other areas, and did not know the hospital or the people who use it.
“There are so many people who are passionate about the QEH, who have worked there for years, and if you had people on the project team who understood the demographic of West Norfolk, it would be a much truer experience,” he said.
The whistleblower also highlighted that overpaying on salaries is a waste in what is already a tight budget.
However, Paul Brooks, director of estates and facilities and the senior responsible officer for the new QEH, defended the decision, saying the funding for the rebuild comes from a separate budget from the trust’s finance.
“All expenditure is subject to national scrutiny and governed by our alliance agreement, which sets out how we must work with the NHP team and their delivery partners,” he said.
“We are building a hospital that is truly fit for the future. The New QEH will be one of the most advanced hospitals in Europe, and a project of this scale demands a highly skilled team.
He added that the QEH is one of the few trusts that have an internal project team, and although some have had to relocate, the team has the “knowledge and expertise” of the current staff.
“GET ON WITH IT”
Part of the frustration is that the new hospital is meant to be finished by 2032, yet the work has not yet begun.
But to get the ball rolling, one massive project still needs to happen – the multi-storey car park.
James Wild says he is urging the Government to “get on with it” as its funding is yet to be released.
Mr Brooks announced the hospital is now approaching the end of the design phase and preparing to submit its full business case.
“Subject to approval, construction is expected to begin in 2026,” he said.
But the whistleblower is concerned that the slow-moving design phase has cost more than it should have, especially since it was first approved in 2023.
“It just seems like utter madness,” he said.
“We haven’t even got a shovel in the ground yet, and the costs are just going through the roof, and it’s largely, in my mind, because of the type of people we’ve employed to deliver it.”
Mr Brooks described the new multi-storey as an “enabling project” which will allow the new hospital to be built on the current main car park.
“The car park will be built to the latest standards, designed to take account of the weight of electric vehicles and provide wider spaces for modern cars,” he said.
SO WHAT’S THE COURSE OF TREATMENT?
It’s all well and good looking at what has gone wrong, but what needs to be done to improve?
Mr Wild believes it’s about upgrades.
“The issue across the health service is that productivity is 10% below pre-Covid levels,” he said.
“That means fewer operations, checks, and scans are being carried out than should be the case.
“Changing that requires greater use of technology, better working practices, and a relentless focus on waiting lists. “
Mr Jermy agreed and said Labour’s ten-year plan for the NHS will shift care from hospital to the community, upgrade analogue to digital, and move from sickness to prevention.
“Locally, we have seen the practical benefits of this plan with the Bridge Street GP surgery in Downham Market receiving government funding, allowing it to be modernised, increasing capacity for more appointments,” he said.
The hospital is now working with the newly-formed Norfolk and Waveney University Hospitals Group as well as NHS England and regulators, to deliver urgent improvements.
Chris Bown said: ”We recognise and take very seriously any concerns raised about the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
“As an experienced leader with a strong track record of turning around financially and operationally distressed hospitals, I have been appointed to lead the hospital team to bring improvement.”
The measures to be put in place to improve the QEH’s rating include:
• Creating a clear financial improvement plan.
• Recruiting more specialist emergency department consultants to reduce long wait times.
• Building an urgent treatment centre next year to take pressure off.
• Improving flow throughout the hospital by working with NHS organisations to create sustainable change.
• Tackling delays in cancer and diagnostic waits by using specialist support to increase the hospital’s capacity.
