After suspending visiting earlier in the year, we are now able to offer limited visiting to some wards at the discretion of the nurse in-charge.”
Read more on visiting times...
We recognise the impact that a long stay in hospital can have on families and the importance of maintaining strong communication. Our ward staff are keeping in touch with patients’ next of kin directly and our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) can help pass on personal messages from family and friends.
After suspending visiting earlier in the year, we are now able to offer limited visiting to some wards at the discretion of the nurse in-charge.”
Read more on visiting times...
We recognise the impact that a long stay in hospital can have on families and the importance of maintaining strong communication. Our ward staff are keeping in touch with patients’ next of kin directly and our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) can help pass on personal messages from family and friends.
The Queen Alexandra Hospital is located just on the hill slopes of Portsdown Hill overlooking Portsmouth. It is conveniently situated for both the M27 and A3M.
Family members and carers play an important role in supporting patients during an episode of ill health. We are committed to the active involvement of family members, friends and carers during a hospital stay. Family members and carers play an important role in supporting patients during an episode of ill health.
More information on visiting hospital for an appointment.
If you've had experience of using our services and would like to make a comment then please contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS). Your views are very important to us and we would like to hear where you think improvements are needed or where things have gone so well that you would like to share your thanks or gratitude with the staff involved. When things have not gone so well then you can be sure that we want to hear from you, so please get in touch with PALS.
During your stay in hospital you will meet a number of different members of staff. All members of staff wear name badges, but if you are not sure who someone is or what they do, please feel free to ask them to introduce themselves and explain what they do.
If you have any questions about your treatment, please ask a doctor or a nurse.
There are lots of opportunities for you to get involved with the Trust, from volunteering to attending our public meetings, our Annual General Meeting or our hospital open day which is held every year.
We welcome and value your feedback and use the views you share with us in a number of ways to learn and make improvements as well as sharing best practice. Feedback can be provided in a number of ways.
Date: 06 January 2023
Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust is continuing to run the Queen Alexandra Hospital site in critical incident mode to protect patient safety due to an over-full hospital and Emergency Department. Like many areas across the country large numbers of people in the Portsmouth and South East Hampshire area require hospital or emergency care which has put extreme pressure on the hospital’s capacity.
Dr John Knighton, Medical Director, said “We are now on day nine of running our services in critical incident mode. This means we can prioritise urgent and emergency care, redeploy staff to the areas with the greatest need and treat additional patients in our wards and hospital spaces that we wouldn’t do normally. All of our staff are focused and committed to ensuring we can care for everyone who needs us as quickly and safely as possible.
“We would like to thank the local community, patients and their families for their patience and support. Your experience as a patient at PHU may not be up to standards that we aspire to, or you expect from us. However, we would like to reassure you that our clinical standards and patient safety will not be compromised.”
Due to the number of patients who continue to need the hospital, new patients who need hospital care and the large numbers of people arriving at the Emergency Department there is pressure on our bed capacity throughout the hospital. This means there are delays in admitting patient to our wards as quickly as we would like. A number of actions have been put in place to help including opening up additional beds, setting up a larger discharge lounge for patients ready to return home, redeploying staff to clinical areas and wards and ensuring our Same Day Emergency Care units are operational to care for people.
Liz Rix, Chief Nurse added “Patient safety is our top priority and our staff are doing everything they can to treat everyone as quickly and safely as possible. Volunteers have stepped up to help us feed patients, move patients to wards, and get water and drinks to ensure patients stay hydrated. And we are also working with our partners and teams in the community to avoid hospital admissions and find suitable accommodation and packages of care so people can return back to their home as soon as possible.”
Thank you to staff, patients, families and the wider community for your continued support and help.
How you can help
