We are rated most improved for patients attending as emergencies

/ universityhospitalsplymouth

We have been rated the most improved Trust in England in relation to the 4-hour target despite increased demand for the Emergency Department. 

In data shared by NHS England, UHP is leading the trusts who have made the most improvement regarding the 4-hour waiting time target for patients attending our Urgent and Emergency Care services and Minor Injury Units during the 2024/25 year. The 4-hour target for 2024/25 is to see and treat 78% of patients within 4 hours of them arriving. In 2023/24 UHP was seeing an average of 54.9% of patients within 4 hours, but with the recent improvements this has risen by almost 10% to 64.8% in the 2024/25 financial year to date. 

UHP is also among the top 10 trusts in the country for improvements in the number of patients waiting more than 12 hours in the Emergency Department. In 2023/24, 18% of patients attending as emergencies would have waited more than 12 hours, however, in the 2024/25 financial year to date this has decreased to 16% of patients. 

These improvements have been made despite demand for emergency services at UHP increasing by 6.1% in 2024/25, equating to an additional 4,646 attendances. Meeting this additional demand and improving the experience for the almost 300 patients attending the Emergency Department each day has been possible due to the commitment and dedication of colleagues who are working on the Trust’s ‘One Plan’ – a programme which is driving improvements in the quality of urgent and emergency care for patients.  

Vicky Carter, Senior Matron for Urgent and Emergency Care, said: “For our patients, what we are showing is that they are not waiting in the back of ambulances for as long. We’re able to get them into a more comfortable space, we’re able to get them onto an appropriate bed.

“We’ve hugely increased the in reach from virtual wards, Same Day Emergency Care Unit (SDEC), frailty, our frequent attender’s team, our homeless team – that really feels different. If you’re a patient coming in and seeking specific support, it is much easier now to connect with that specific support than it ever was before.”

Derriford hospital building with blue sky.

Read the full story on the Trust website 

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