BARNSLEY Hospice has appointed a new chief executive who hopes to turn the cash-strapped charity’s fortunes around - following a turbulent period which saw healthcare inspectors condemn the service.
In July, the hospice was placed in special measures after being marked as ‘inadequate’ following a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection.
The hospice was hit hard during the pandemic, reporting losses of up to £2,300 per day which created a huge cash shortfall.
Former chief executive Julie Ferry, who led the charity for seven years, subsequently stepped down from her role and her replacement, Martine Tune, said she’s dedicated to improving its fortunes.
Martine has taken on the dual role of chief executive and chief nurse.
She said: “I am extremely pleased to take on the role of chief executive and chief nurse at Barnsley Hospice and look forward to working with its dedicated team to deliver high quality specialist palliative and end of life care services to the people of Barnsley.”
CQC inspectors found ‘the service did not always have systems and processes in place to safely administer and record medicines’ use’, and inspectors noted that staff lacked critical training which had not been undertaken since 2017, after its last inspection the year before.
They also said incidents such as falls were not always investigated, and that ‘staff did not know what incidents to report and how to report them and did not report incidents and near misses in line with policy’.
Martine added: “I want Barnsley Hospice to be judged as outstanding by the people of Barnsley, all our partners and the CQC.
“I’m starting work on achieving this vision now, with a robust response to the CQC’s report and a focused improvement and development agenda.”
Deputy chief executive and director of finance, Ian Muffett, thanked Julie.
“We’d like to thank Julie for her hard work leading the hospice over the past seven years and particularly during the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic,” he said.
“We look forward very much to working with our new chief executive, Martine, as we develop and implement action plans in response to the CQC report and continue to deliver specialist care services to patients and their families.”
