Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust has been slammed over its failure to hit urgent cancer referral targets.
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00:00Northumbria Healthcare Trust has made some progress in reducing the backlog of patients
00:05waiting more than 62 days for treatment after an urgent referral for suspected cancer.
00:10However, performance is still below the national target of 85%, with 78% of patients in the
00:16final quarter of 2023-24 receiving treatment within the 62-day window.
00:22NHS England data revealed that as of February 2024, 59 patients in the Northumbria Healthcare
00:27area were waiting longer than the 62-day target.
00:31While the Trust has seen improvements, there remains pressure on referrals for certain
00:34types of cancer, making it clear that the situation is not yet where it needs to be.
00:39Delays in treatment can significantly affect outcomes, making the failure to meet these
00:43targets a serious concern.
00:45Chris Jenkins, the Trust's Director of Performance and Governance, outlined several actions taken
00:49to improve access to services, including efforts to reduce the cancer backlog.
00:54Chris Jenkins acknowledged that while the Trust has made progress in comparison to
00:58other NHS Trusts regionally and nationally, there is still so much work to be done.
01:03Councillor Georgina Hill expressed strong criticism of the NHS as a whole during a meeting
01:07of the Council's Health and Wellbeing Scrutiny Committee.
01:10She voiced concerns that the missed cancer targets were costing lives, and stressed that
01:14despite assurances, the situation had not improved over the years.
01:19Hill described the situation as embarrassing, calling for fundamental changes to address
01:24the wider NHS crisis.
01:26She emphasised that her anger was not aimed at local NHS staff who are under significant
01:30pressure, but at the broader national system.
01:33Chris Jenkins acknowledged that while improvements had been made, the Trust's performance was
01:38still far from satisfactory.
01:40A report will be released at the end of the month with updated figures.