Patients staying at the Royal Devon hospitals, which include North Devon District Hospital, have rated the trust highly in the annual CQC Inpatient Survey. Credit: Royal Devon
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11 Sept 2025
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11 Sept 2025
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Patients staying at the Royal Devon hospitals, which include North Devon District Hospital, have rated the trust highly in the annual CQC Inpatient Survey. Credit: Royal Devon
Patients in North Devon and Exeter have rated the healthcare trust as the best in the South West for their hospital stay.
The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has been rated the top-performing trust in the region for inpatient experience in the latest Care Quality Commission (CQC) Adult Inpatient Survey (2024), released yesterday (Tuesday, September 9).
The national survey asked patients aged 16 and over about their experiences during a recent stay in hospital, on an adult ward. It covers everything from admission and treatment to nursing staff, communication, cleanliness and discharge.
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In the South West, the Royal Devon ranked first in eight of the 11 key areas of patient experience after 523 patients who stayed at the trust hospitals completed the survey.
The trust performed best in six areas according to patients: Being treated with kindness and compassion; feeling treated with respect and dignity; trust and confidence in the doctors caring for them; cleanliness and comfort of the hospital ward; consistent communication from staff and the overall experience of their hospital stay.
While there were no areas where the trust scored below the national average, patients did highlight some aspects where they felt their experience could have been better.
This included noise on wards, communication around discharge and dietary needs. The said it was already working on ways to make changes in these areas.
Bev Allingham, director of nursing for northern services at the trust, said: “These results are a powerful reflection of the care, compassion and professionalism shown by colleagues across the Royal Devon.
“We’re proud of the culture we’ve built together, one that puts people first and ensures patients are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. I’d like to thank our teams for everything they do, and our patients for trusting us with their care.”
The CQC regularly carries out patient surveys to find out what people think of the NHS healthcare services they use.
You can read the full 2024 CQC Adult Inpatient Survey results HERE.
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