Trust cancelled more than 1,000 operations in Derby due to NHS strikes

The trust said UHDB industrial action planning had "maintained safety during strikes, but a great deal of activity has been lost"

More than 1,000 operations were cancelled due to strike action by hospital trust staff in the last year.

University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Trust (UHDB) said 1,052 operations and 1,869 first outpatient appointments had to be rearranged.

UHDB board papers show 55 patients have been waiting more than 18 months for their procedure.

The British Medical Association (BMA) said "striking was the last thing we wanted".

The cancellation figures were for the start of the 2023-24 financial year.

NHS England staff decided to take strike action because of disputes over pay.

The UHDB was in Tier 1 national regulation due its backlogs in care, but this has since improved and it is now in tier 2.

However, board papers show it was in line with other hospitals in the region for "lost capacity".

Stephen Posey, UHDB chief executive, said despite the backlog, the trust had fewer than 1,000 patients who had been waiting more than 65 weeks for their planned care treatment at the end of March this year.

"Against a backdrop of having to unfortunately rearrange 1,800 outpatient appointments and 1,000 operations during the year due to industrial action, this is a testament to the hard work of teams across the trust; altogether, they have seen and discharged almost 75,000 patients during the year who would otherwise have waited more than 65 weeks," said Mr Posey.

Figures from board papers show the number of patients who waited more than 65 weeks by the end of March 2024 was less than 1,000 at 991.

Dr Becky Acres, chairwoman of the BMA East Midlands Regional Council, said "striking was the very last thing we wanted".