Cambridge's Epic Comeback

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Trust have been recommended by the Care Quality Commission to be removed from special measures.

The CQC report, which was published earlier this week, has now rated the South East trust as “good”.

The recommendation came following their latest inspection which covered eight main areas including: surgery, critical care and maternity services and then rated the departments upon safety, effectiveness, care, responsiveness and leadership.

The report has also said that previous concerns regarding the Epic EPR, which initially caused the trust to be placed in special measures, have been addressed since their last visit.

After a “significant number of modifications” to Epic, “many of the concerns we had identified at previous inspections had been addressed” the report stated.

One of the main reasons behind this was trust staff increasing their familiarity and knowledge of the system and producing “a more positive culture”.

"The recognition of the outstanding care our staff provide to our patients is a testament to their dedication and skill”, Chief Executive Roland Sinker told The BBC.

"We are on a journey and will learn from the findings of the report to make further improvements.

“We will continue to focus our attention on the areas rightly identified for action, such as ongoing issues with capacity and waiting times, where we are still not as responsive as we should be.”

Following September's inspection, Chief Inspector of Hospitals, Prof Sir Mike Richards, said he was "recommending that Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is removed from special measures".

After the announcement NHS Improvement said the staff should be "proud of their achievement" after the "fantastic news".

It has been a tough journey for all those involved at Cambridge since late September.

But through determination and team-work it is great to finally see such a brilliant trust with superb staff come through the other side and be rewarded for their endeavour.