Friends and family recommendations

In April 2026, 99% of inpatients said they were extremely likely or likely to recommend QVH to their friends and family.

Some of the patient feedback we received during the month included:

Burns unit: “All staff from start to finish have been amazing. Supportive, informative, just great – thank you.”

Critical care unit: “The care and support me and my family have been given is the best. Couldn’t have asked for a better team to care for me. Thanks guys.”

Corneo department: “I was very pleased with the service I had. Thank you so much.”

Margaret Duncombe ward: “From the time I first stood in this hospital, I have had the best experience, both in the ICU and the MD ward. The staff are so friendly and welcoming and exceptionally professional in every aspect of their work. The ward has a wonderful feel about it. The food and hygiene is exceptional. I want to thank all the staff for all the support throughout my stay. It was amazing.”

Maxillofacial department: “Excellent experience from start to finish. All staff from reception, radiology and nursing were professional in approach and friendly in manner. The consultant (Mr K Altman) was approachable, informative and put one at ease. He explained things in understandable terms.”

Minor Injuries Unit: “We were seen very quickly with my daughter. The nurse was brilliant and assessed everything. She was so kind and caring and explained everything thoroughly.

Peanut (childrens’) ward: “Everyone was very friendly and helpful. Everything was explained clearly. I liked the colouring in the playroom and the iPads. They took really good care of me.”

Plastics department: “Very pleasant staff and surgeon. Music helped very much, made me feel reassured.”

Pre-assessment: “Consistently, I find my attendance at your clinic is excellent, including today. All staff, medical, admin – everyone is very patient, kind, highly efficient and very affable. QVH appointments are excellent and the care from all the staff is above and beyond and genuine.”

Ross Tilley ward: “The professional, compassion and expertise was second to none. Every member of staff, from the auxiliary nurses to students to senior nurses, physios, doctors – all so understanding of the fragile state many of us are in. You never felt like you were asking too much.”

Sleep disorder centre: “My experience was excellent – getting an appointment quickly; staff were efficient and friendly; explanation of procedure comprehensive.”

You can read more of what patients say about us on our NHS Choices page and on the Care Opinion website.

About the friends and family test

All NHS hospitals publish their ‘friends and family test’ scores each month. It is a simple measure to help the NHS understand how well it is caring for patients and to enable patients to compare the performance of different hospitals and wards.

How are the scores used?

The scores are also collected and published nationally on the NHS Choices website to help patients compare hospitals.

At QVH we like to know what our patients and visitors think of their experience so that we can continue improving. There are a variety of ways we get feedback from patients. See how to feed back for more details.

Because the scores are collected and published monthly they provide up-to-date information on the performance of each ward. We also use patient feedback and data from a wide variety of other sources, including national and local surveys, to help us monitor and improve patient care. These include the national inpatient survey and the national cancer patient survey.

We publish an annual patient experience report which reviews the feedback we have received and sets out progress with our rolling plan of action to improve patient experience.

Actions taken as a result of feedback we have received include:

• Increasing the size of disabled parking bays
• Installing new parking meters which allow an hourly charge, rather than the previous three-hour minimum
• Introduction of media screens in outpatient departments to provide better information about waiting times in the clinics
• Installing self-check in kiosks in outpatients. These make checking-in quicker and more convenient for patients, enhancing confidentiality and free up receptionists to assist patients and respond to queries.

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Page last updated: 20 May 2025.