Cash reward for improving hospital waiting times

Derriford hospital awarded £4 million

Major improvements in waiting times at Derriford Hospital’s emergency department have been rewarded with £4 million grant by the government.

University Hospitals Plymouth was the top most-improved trust in the country in 2024/25 for patients being seen and either admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours.

It was also in the top 20 for the number of patients waiting 12 hours in the emergency department after a decision to admit them.

The government awards cash to hospital trusts that reduce waiting times and deliver more appointments.

Eighteen months ago Plymouth “started right at the bottom of the pack” with 55 per cent of patients being seen within four hours.

A meeting of University Hospital Plymouth NHS Trust’s board was told on Wednesday that the figure was more than 70 per cent at least three days a week, and on one day in May it was an “unprecedented” 83 per cent.

Ambulance handover waits also fell 20 per cent this month, with no decrease in demand, said interim chief executive Mark Hackett.

The trust has been under “significant scrutiny” for the last two years and was first issued with a warning notice to improve by the Care Quality Commission in 2021.

At one point in 2023 patients arriving at Derriford by ambulance faced the longest wait in the country to be handed over to the emergency department.

There has been a focus on improvement for urgent and emergency care, including creating new pathways away from the emergency department, including direct access to a unit for urology investigations and faster access for referrals to a chest pain service.

There have also been initiatives to treat people in the community to prevent  hospital visits, and investing in same-day emergency care.

The board was told the trust is edging towards the middle of the pack for emergency waiting times.

The £4 million is expected to be spent on new equipment for the emergency department

Mr Hackett said this improvement “makes my heart sing” but he was not ready to declare victory too early.

“I would like to see us delivering over a longer period. We have been consistently over 70 per cent at three-out-of-seven days of the week over the past month. I would like us to do that for three months and then we can say that’s the real improvement.”

He said on an individual basis they praised staff every day, sending cards and treats like pizza.

Board member Dr Helen Smith said the trust needed credible improvement over time.

A staff survey suggested that staff are not happy and she said: “We just need to be mindful that it does not create cynicism.”