Princess Alexandra in Harlow among hospitals with worst A&E waiting times
Health / Tue 14th Feb 2023 at 11:16am
A&E waiting times have deteriorated so much this winter that at some hospitals in England more than half of patients have had to wait more than four hours reports the BBC.
BBC analysis of data for December and January shows Hull University Hospitals, Wye Valley and Shrewsbury and Telford were worst for A&E waits.
Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH) is the eighth worst performing trust in relation to A and E waiting times.
The best trust out of the 107 providing data, Northumbria Healthcare, had fewer than 10% waiting more than four hours.
NHS England said plans were being put in place to support struggling trusts.
The BBC analysis of published waiting-time figures comes as the NHS is nearing the end of its worst winter since records began nearly 20 years ago.
There have been delays across the emergency care system with both ambulances and A&Es struggling.
But the impact of those delays has not been felt evenly across the country.
Click below for the full story.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-64629144
Some more Princess Alexandra Hospital statistics
Nicholas Taylor
2023-02-14 11:40:04
Nobody should be surprised by these figures. The population of Harlow has increased by over 10.000 in the last decade with many more houses being built in Bishops Stortford and other surrounding areas. The present hospital is in some areas no longer for for purpose in respect of capacity. Instead of faffing about trying to build a new hospital outside the town the time has come when such plans need to be abandoned and plans put together to build a whole new hospital building on the existing site. Get the former Square site bought, put a multi storey car park on it which would release land for redevelopment and of course ensuring that the new hospital has more beds and a bigger A&E department. Nicholas Taylor, Leader of the Harlow Alliance Party.
Jean
2023-02-14 12:38:17
I totally agree. I'm not an expert but it makes sense to build on the land around the current hospital+for me it's where it belongs.
AuntyBoo51
2023-02-14 19:35:24
Nicholas Taylor the problem is not just about space and beds, it's about not having enough qualified staff. After a recent stay in PAH the night staff were all Agency staff. For the most part there's nothing wrong with Qualified Agency staff but when you have to have one of the day staff cover nights so that Agency staff knows where all the important stuff is kept it doesn't fill you with confidence.
Nostradamus
2023-02-14 20:54:49
Either way it's long been clear to many of us that to start the build on the current PAH site makes sense. The new hospital as proposed is out of town and nowhere near either the bus or train stations. The PAH site is already there and building could start immediately. By the time it's built staffing issues could be well on the way to being solved.
Nicholas Taylor
2023-02-14 22:29:41
A move to another site was the Boards preferred site, one of the reasons given was that it could be opened a year earlier, that is 2025, than if PAH remained on the present site. The estimated cost of a new hospital has now doubled to some £800 million and rising and is unlikely to be fully open to at least 2030! In the meantime staff have been leaving in droves I understand, many unsettled by the prospect of having to find new homes near to the new site, which is basically in the middle of a field. Recent reports suggest that Boris' pledge to open forty new hospitals has dwindled to just eight.
Jean
2023-02-15 08:37:31
I questioned the staffing shortage at the meeting+the response was that the new 'state of the arts' hospital would attract more staff. Surely this could still happen on the current site. Are agency staff paid at a higher rate? Bring in better flexible working+reduce or stop the costly use of agencies. The patients would benefit from continuity of care.
Dave Benson Phillips
2023-02-15 17:11:46
Harlow Hospital. Where old and frail people are left waiting on hard chairs - some for 25 hours and still not seen - without any food , drink, warmth or comfort . Appointments cancelled at last minute by the hospital but then never rebooked for you. A Harlow MP who hates the health service and the disabled (look at his voting record). Sort out the Hospital we have before building a new one.
Bobby Bobbler
2023-02-15 19:41:31
Dave, you sure Robert Halfon hates the disabled?!
adam
2023-02-15 21:14:11
Lets just admit the NHS does not work, that its staff are mostly adequate at best and as an organisation it is focused on its needs not those of the patient and it has become political. If you want to live avoid hospital like the plague, if you end up there make sure you have a strong family advocate with you for care or you will regret it. If you are over 60 your are in a world of trouble the NHS will kill you via its path ways.
Hayley
2023-02-15 22:40:24
You can’t fault the labour ward and unit. I’m so grateful to all the nhs midwives that helped to deliver all 4 of my children. The nhs as a whole is in turmoil. More people, less medical facilities and staff. This is all down to the government. We all pay for the nhs and rightly so. The NHS news expanding. Staff, facilities and wage.
Dave Benson Phillips
2023-02-16 06:55:45
Bobby Bobbler - When you vote against disabled benefits in Parliment it doesn't look good does it?
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