FOR the 16th consecutive month Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust (WAHT) has failed to hit its ‘emergency access standard’ for A&E patients.
The trust has a target of dealing with the needs of 95 per cent of emergency patients within four hours at the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch and Worcestershire Royal, but that figure dipped below 90 per cent in December and January and slumped to 82.4 per cent in February.
In a report to the trust’s board key factors hitting performance included high bed occupancy – making it difficult to relieve pressure in A&E when patients are waiting for a bed so they can be admitted.
Figures for the Alex put bed occupancy at 104 per cent and 102 per cent at Worcestershire Royal.
Meanwhile the A&E departments saw 12,097 patients in February 2016, a 12.3 per cent increase on the same period last year while surges in ambulance arrivals also contributed to overcrowding in emergency departments.
Overall the number of emergency admissions rose by 19.7 per cent in February compared to February 2015, from 3,479 to 4,166.
The trust also failed to deliver the national 15 minute standard for assessment in A&E hitting 32 minutes in January and 42 minutes in February 2016.
Referral to treatment times for outpatients also slipped back for the month and while improving, the trust continues to under perform for urgent cancer cases seen within two weeks of referral.
