Staff praised for cutting ultrasound waiting times

The ultrasound team have been praised for their work in cutting waiting times

NHS staff in Wolverhampton have been praised for cutting waiting times for ultrasound scans.

Health chiefs at The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust said 100% of patients in April were offered appointments for scans within six weeks.

This was a near three-fold improvement on the same time last year, when only 35% got an appointment within the same time frame.

The trust said it was down to a number of factors, including recruiting nearly 20 sonographers in the last 15 months.

Glen Whitehouse, group manager of diagnostic services at the trust, said: “A year ago we had thousands of patients waiting for an ultrasound, and many over 13 weeks.

“As of April, no patients are waiting longer than six weeks and that will make a huge difference to patient outcomes and experience.

“This has been achieved by the incredible ultrasound team, which has implemented new processes.”

Bosses also highlighted expanded training, flexible working and partial booking among reasons for the turnaround.

Partial booking involves writing to the patient to offer them the opportunity to phone and make a mutually convenient appointment, rather than sending out a fixed date and time.

Mr Whitehouse said: “We have gone from the most challenged department in the West Midlands to one of the best – and we are already being asked for help by other departments.”