Apology to A&E patients waiting too long in Sandwell
Bosses at a Black Country hospital trust have apologised to patients who have been waiting more than four hours to be seen in A&E.
Numbers attending the emergency department at Sandwell and Birmingham City hospitals have returned to "pre-Covid" levels following a dramatic drop-off at the height of the pandemic as people stayed away from hospital.
But as rising patients have returned to A&E, so have the long-standing problems of making sure enough are seen on time.
The number of patients seen and treated within four hours dropped to 84.9 per cent in August, the most recent figures available. The national NHS target is 95 per cent.
There are fears a second wave of coronavirus this winter could overwhelm hospitals already having to battle the usual winter pressures.
NHS bosses in Sandwell have confirmed coronavirus patients have begun to rise again.
The trust's acting chief executive David Carruthers said in his latest board report: "Our performance against the emergency four-hour target remains lower than we would like and we apologise to patients who have had to wait longer than they should for care and treatment.
"Patient attendance is now at pre-covid levels with some particularly high admissions on certain days.
"The group and operations leads are continuing to address the improvement plan actions, that are well known to the board, that include a focus on discharge earlier in the day with preparation done the day before to enable flow from the front door, senior decision-making within the first hour of arrival and timely triage and treatment of the minors stream."
Mr Carruthers also revealed a patient with mental health needs was kept waiting in A&E for more than 12 hours recently, a breach of NHS guidelines. Mr Carruthers said the incident would be subject to review.
He said: "The patient was deemed unsafe to move from the department before a suitable psychiatric inpatient bed could be found. A table top review will be carried out on the care of this patient with partners to identify any learning.
"Patients in ED with mental health needs are experiencing long waits on occasions which needs addressing with mental health providers and specialist commissioning colleagues, with recognition that our emergency departments are not the best place to provide appropriate care."
