New Cross Hospital trust’s £45,400 fine for ambulance waits
A hospital trust has been hit with a £45,400 fine after more than 120 patients were left waiting in ambulances for at least half an hour in December.
Another 21 were kept waiting for more than an hour as ambulances piled up outside New Cross hospital in Wolverhampton.
The hospital struggled to cope with patient numbers in the run-up to Christmas, with just 78 per cent in A&E seen within four hours.
It is the latest penalty the Royal Wolverhampton Trust has faced over not getting patients from ambulances into hospital quickly enough.
More ambulances waited outside hospitals in December than at any point in 2017/18 – and the number waiting at least half an hour almost tripled from October.
A total of 122 were delayed by between 30 minutes and an hour and 21 for more than an hour during December, the most recent figures available.
The delays have resulted in the trust being given a fine of £45,400.
A&E waiting times performance at New Cross also suffered amid winter pressures, dropping to 78.4 per cent in December.
The total had been at 90 per cent in July. The national NHS target is to have 95 per cent of patients seen within four hours.
A trust board report said: “The fine for ambulances during December was £45,400. This is based on 122 patients between 30-60 minutes at £200 per patient and 21 patients over 60 minutes at £1,000 per patient.”
The latest fine brings the total amount paid out over ambulance transfer failings to £159,800 during 2017/18.
"Figures showed nearly 500 more ambulances attended the hospital over the Christmas period compared to the previous year, piling the pressure on staff.
"A total of 12,168 ambulances arrived during the third quarter of 2017/18, up from 11,646 12 months earlier.
A trust spokeswoman said: “These are unprecedented times for the NHS and the challenges facing our staff increase on a daily basis. We are seeing record numbers of ambulances. We will work with partners to improve our handover times.”
