1 in 5 NHS trusts miss key targets for entire year
ALMOST one in five hospital trusts have not achieved national waiting times targets for cancer, accident and emergency and routine surgery for an entire year, figures reveal.
Twenty-nine out of 157 trusts missed the three key performance targets over the last 12 months.
This is the worst ever performance on a national scale with experts saying it is further proof the NHS is in the grip of an ‘eternal winter’.
In England, 16 out of 132 hospital trusts missed the three targets each month for a year, according to BBC analysis.
This compared to three out of 14 health boards in Scotland and five out of seven in Wales. None of the five health boards in Northern Ireland hit the targets. Last night, health officials insisted more patients than ever are being treated within the guidelines.
But Labour health spokesman Jonathan Ashworth attacked the performance as a ‘mess’.
He said: ‘Behind each of these appalling statistics is a person waiting longer in pain and distress for an operation, perhaps languishing on a trolley in an overcrowded A&E or disgracefully forced to endure the burden of not receiving timely treatment for cancer.
‘The Government should be getting a grip of this mess but instead are left utterly paralysed by the ongoing Brexit shambles while patients pay the price.’
Waiting times are part of the NHS constitution and are designed to ensure patients receive timely care. People arriving at A&E should be seen within four hours then either admitted to a ward or treated and discharged.
Cancer patients who are given an urgent referral by their GP are supposed to start their cancer treatment within two months. Waiting times for nonemergency treatments, such as knee and hip replacements, can vary. Patients in England and Scotland are meant to be seen within 18 weeks compared with 26 weeks in Wales.
Northern Ireland has a 13week target but only measures part of the patient’s wait once they are under the care of a hospital doctor. Hospitals have blamed rising demand and prioritising emergency care for the worsening national picture.
Last winter was the busiest on record, resulting in the worst performance figures since they began 14 years ago.
Hospital staff warned the usual let-up in summer did not happen this year, putting the NHS in a precarious position going into this winter.
Chris Hopson, of NHS Providers which represents hospitals, warned the coming months are expected to be even more challenging than last year.
He said: ‘ The pressure on A&E services and the knock-on impact this is having in other parts of the health and care system, coupled with higher levels of staff vacancies, will put services under significant strain this winter.
‘If NHS trusts are to recover their performance against key targets, we must be realistic about the time and resources this will take.’
An NHS spokesman said: ‘Despite being hit by a perfect storm of arctic conditions and flu last winter – followed by the hottest summer on record – the NHS continues to look after an increasing number of patients within the four-hour target.’
‘Patients pay price for shambles’