COLCHESTER General Hospital is not meeting even “basic expectations”, according to new chief executive Nick Hulme.

In an email sent to all staff, which has been passed to the Gazette by a hospital employee, Mr Hulme also said the latest critical report into the Turner Road hospital is “not something that anyone working here will be proud of”.

The report found a number of concerns over bullying, specifically in Peldon ward, a lack of leadership in A&E, a shortage of staff and incorrect methods of deal with dementia patients.

Although the hospital was not graded in the report, it remains in special measures.

In the scathing email, Mr Hulme said: “As chief executive, my prime focus is the safety of patient services, ensuring they are consistently accessible, consistently of a high quality and continually meeting the operational standards expected.

“I came to Colchester to address the concerns detailed in the many CQC reports and section notices stretching back to 2014 and it has become clear to me that the trust has not been meeting these basic expectations.”

He added: “This is not about the CQC and their requirements, it is about providing safe, compassionate care to patients both as an organisation and as individual members of staff, each and every day, in a systematic and caring way – again, something which we have not been doing.”

In a statement Unison members said: “We are disappointed both by [the report’s] findings and the reaction of the trust’s leadership.

“Clearly a culture of bullying has been allowed to continue and now the trust seeks to lay the blame for any failings at the feet of the staff.

“The CQCs report clearly states that many concerns were raised by the staff themselves, that many of the areas where problems exist are understaffed and that bullying and discrimination are still present.

“We feel strongly that the new leadership is failing to identify and solve the problems that exist while creating an atmosphere in which staff are even further demotivated and undervalued.”

It added: “This report contains findings of staff whistleblowing, a bullying culture and evidence of inconsistent and inaccurate data on targets.

“This would seem to suggest that the staff are simply not being listened to and that those who raise concerns feel they have no choice but to contact the CQC directly.

“The CQC also found ‘there was a lack of action and response by the board on key issues such as A&E performance and safer surgery checks, despite knowing the risks were there and presenting an immediate risk to patient safety’.

“These findings betray a situation of total disengagement by the board with staff, a culture where raising concerns is not welcome and complete disinterest in tackling the issues with which this trust is struggling.”

The statement also said because 16 directors have filled the trust’s top six jobs in the last two years, staff have been left “floundering and lacking direction”.

It is understood Mr Hulme has been in talks with NHS Improvement in a bid to “embed a programme of continuous improvement to meet these expectations”.

A six-month programme is yet to be announced.

Mr Hulme has officially issued a “heartfelt apology” to patients and has admitted care can be a lottery at the trust.