It’s hit and miss for Warwick Hospital as it tries to meet targets

South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the hospital, narrowly missed an NHS target of 95 per cent of patients in the accident and emergency department being seen within four hours, with a figure of 94.7 per cent.

But despite a national trend that is likely see many hospitals missing other waiting time targets, Warwick has met and expects to continue meeting the 18-week figure for ‘elective’ procedures such as hip and knee replacements and the 32-day diagnosis-to-treatment and 62-day referral-to-treatment targets for cancer patients.

Trust chief executive Glen Burley said: “We have got a bit of a population growth locally and a number of patients do default to A&E when they could be going to their GP or to a pharmacy. There is still a bit of education that we have to work on.”

Mr Burley pointed out that ongoing work at the hospital’s A&E department will result in a bigger waiting area, a ‘see and treat’ area for minor ailments and a new digital x-ray machine, which will help to speed up waiting times.

Meanwhile upgraded theatres will help to ensure the site can cope with an increasing demand for elective procedures - where they have chosen to be treated at Warwick.

He said: “Our orthopaedic care in particular has got a good reputation, which is good news for us. But the nature of the target is that whoever chooses us, we have to treat within 18 weeks.

“We are still meeting that target. But what has not helped is the new ‘fast, stop or slow’ system introduced by NHS Warwickshire, which delays certain non-urgent treatments, meaning we have had a surge of patients coming in who should have been treated last year.”

On the treatment of cancer patients, Mr Burley said: “These are probably the most important targets to meet.”

A recent report published by the health regulator Monitor predicted a number of foundation trusts - the group of top-performing hospitals in the NHS, of which Warwick Hospital is one - would face difficulties keeping waiting times down in the coming year.

Official data show that the longest waits are for orthopaedic care.