Sirona care & health has retained its overall rating of good following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Today Janet Rowse, Chief Executive, praised staff for their commitment, dedication and passion in delivering services during the challenges of the pandemic which coincided with the organisation's rapid growth.

CQC Inspectors visited the service in November to inspect community inpatients and urgent care services and to look at whether the organisation was being well-led.

Janet said: Every single member of our teams can take pride in the inspection findings. I know how committed they all are and the dedication and passion they show 365 days of the year.

"The CQC report highlights how colleagues at all levels are trying to do their best for people and are taking the care they provide personally. Importantly the Inspectors recognised our focus on the needs of people receiving care and our desire to plan and manage services to meet those needs.

The report highlighted how Sirona was:

Committed to keeping service users and staff safe and well during the pandemic.

Staff worked well together for the benefit of people and advised them on how to lead healthier lives.

The organisation's commitment to working flexibly and putting people at the centre of everything they do was also recognised and commended by system partners.

Janet said: "We are a learning organisation and our ultimate aim is to build on this report to be outstanding in all that we do and we are committed to involving people both within our organisation and our communities to do this and to help shape our services of the future.

"As with any inspection there were a number of recommendations which will help us deliver even better services and some of these have been actioned already. It was reassuring that many of the areas identified by the Inspectors we had already included in our priorities for the year ahead and work has already started on improvements.

"The Inspectors also highlighted the increase in abuse of our staff which we have publicised previously and will continue to do as this will not be tolerated. They also recognised the challenges the pandemic has brought for us as well as the communities we serve."

Sirona is a not-for-profit social enterprise providing NHS and Local Authority funded community health care services for adults and children in Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. Care was provided for people by Sirona teams across all of this geography from April 2020 – just one week after the country entered its first lockdown due to Covid-19.

The reports are available on the CQC website. HERE: the Sirona report