OXFORDSHIRE’S hospital authority recorded its worst quarterly A&E waiting times since it was formed in 2011, figures released yesterday showed.

From October to December, 86.1 per cent of patients were discharged, admitted or transferred within four hours of arrival. The target is 95 per cent.

It meant 4,327 of the 31,110 who attended Oxford’s John Radcliffe and Banbury’s Horton General hospitals were not seen in that time.

This ranked Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust 33 out of 141 hospital trusts. The average for England was 88.9 per cent.

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October to December is a typically difficult time for hospitals as colder weather brings a rise in admissions.

In 2012 a total 29,670 people attended and 95.4 per cent were seen in four hours. This was 29,535 and 93.3 per cent the following year.

The BBC yesterday reported that national October to December performance for A&E was the worst in 10 years, 92.6 per cent, including other emergency care like minor injuries units.

Rachel Coney, chief executive of Healthwatch Oxfordshire, the official health and social care watchdog, urged residents to tell it about their experiences.

She said: “It is of concern that things are already this bad when we haven’t had any seriously cold weather yet.”

Oxford East Labour MP Andrew Smith said: “These waiting time figures are particularly disappointing, as it shows local A&E waiting worse than it has been for years, and also significantly worse than the national picture. It is the Government which has to take responsibility for the inability of the NHS to cope as it should with these pressures.”

Trust director of clinical services Paul Brennan pointed to rising numbers of patients attending A&E and said: “Our teams are working hard to prioritise the provision of safe, effective, dignified care for all patients.

“We want all of our patients to be referred and treated as quickly as possible and we are working hard with all our health and social care partners across the county to improve the flow of patients in and out of our hospitals.”

 


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