Dear colleague,

I’m pleased to share that our Trust has made the most improvement in emergency care performance in England.

I know we have a long way to go and I’m sorry people are still waiting too long. However, I’m glad our efforts have been recognised.

In January, our performance against the national target for those who are most seriously ill (Type 1) was 32.23 per cent. The work of our teams over several months saw this rise to 50.1 per cent in November.

This means more than 1,500 more people were seen and treated within four hours than in January. We also saw a fall of more than 20 per cent in patients spending over 12 hours in the department.

The introduction of our Same Day Emergency Care departments at both hospitals is just one of the ways we have been able to reduce the pressure in our A&Es by getting patients diagnosed, treated and back home quicker.

Other initiatives like our virtual ward – which help care for frail patients in their own homes, and our Discharge Lounge at Queen’s have helped by freeing up hospital beds.

Strike action this week

Our junior doctors will once again be on strike in their ongoing dispute over better pay and working conditions.

So far this year, the industrial action has resulted in the cancellation of 13,036 outpatient appointments and 1,039 non-urgent surgeries.

I have expressed many times my concern about the impact this is having on our residents, on morale in our hospitals and on our junior doctors who represent the future of the NHS. Like many people across the health service, I hope to see a resolution as soon as possible.

I’d like to end my last update of the year by wishing you a very merry Christmas and a happy new year. I hope you get to relax and enjoy some time with your families over the next couple of weeks.

Best wishes,

Matthew Trainer

Chief Executive