Derriford Hospital misses key targetspublished at 12:34 Greenwich Mean Time 20 November 2018
Jenny Walrond
Health Correspondent, BBC Spotlight
Three key targets for treating patients have been missed at the South West's biggest hospital every month for a year.
University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust is among 16 trusts in England that have failed to treat enough patients in A&E within 4 hours, within 18 weeks of referral from a GP and within 62 days of a cancer referral.
The trust, that includes Derriford Hospital, says the number of patients attending A&E has increased by 3.6% in the last year, while there has been a 16.5% rise in the number of patients referred with suspected cancer.
Quote MessageOur staff continue to work hard to not only ensure that patients receive timely, high-quality care, but we are also making headway to improve waiting times for patients. Since August, we have consistently achieved the two-week wait target for suspected cancer referrals and are performing higher than the national average. In October, we hit six out of nine of all cancer standards.
Kevin Baber, Chief Operating Officer at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust