Shropshire's A&Es are failing to hit targets

In a report given to Telford & Wrekin Clinical Commissioning Group by chief officer David Evans, he claimed problems with "internal procedures" meant that the departments were missing targets.

A&E departments are supposed to see 95 per cent of patients within four hours.

In his chief officer's report, given to the group's governance board meeting held at Harper Adams University in Newport, Mr Evans said that although numbers of people visiting A&E were down on previous years, the departments were still struggling to hit the Government targets.

He did not reveal what the figures are for Telford's Princess Royal Hospital.

But he said: "The figures from this Monday were actually pretty shocking.

"I think it is to do with internal processes in the hospital."

Mr Evans said he would discuss the figures with hospital chief executive Simon Wright and added that a formal escalation process may be put in place for the departments.

The most recent figures from Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust board papers showed the county's two acute hospitals were only seeing about 84 per cent of patients within the four-hour deadline.

In a later discussion of a quality and performance report into the hospital, board member Fran Beck, executive commissioning lead, claimed that previous figures had claimed the hospitals also had a list of four patients who had been waiting more than 52 weeks for treatment.

But following a review of patients, it was thought that the number could increase to 12 people. She said: "That is a higher number than we have ever had."

She said a letter had now been sent out expressing concern over the waiting list.

In February of this year, it was revealed that despite a £1 million investment over the winter, both the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and the PRH failed to meet targets for A&E waiting times but coped better than last year.