Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust: all the key numbers in March

NHS England figures show at Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Sutton’s King’s Mill, Newark and Mansfield Community hospitals, 12,208 patients were waiting for one of 12 standard tests, such as an MRI scan, non-obstetric ultrasound or gastroscopy at this time. Of them, 3,642, 30 per cent, had been waiting for at least six weeks.

Rachel Eddie, SFH chief operating officer, said: “We know there’s a patient behind each and every one of those statistics and we appreciate the impact waiting for diagnosis and treatment can have on patients and their families. We continue to work hard to ensure patients can access the treatment they need and deserve as quickly as possible and I would like to thank patients for their understanding.

“I also want to thank my SFH colleagues and our health and social care partners for their commitment to delivering quality care to our patients as quickly as possible.

“If you think you’re experiencing the symptoms of cancer, please speak to your GP team as quickly as possible.”

The trust has also been granted planning permission for a community diagnostic centre next to Mansfield Community Hospital, with work due to start this summer. The centre is designed to house a ‘one-stop shop’ for patients to access the tests and investigations they need in a single visit, helping give them an answer to their concerns – including with an ‘all-clear’ or diagnosis – sooner.

Separate figures from NHS England show of 98 patients urgently referred by the NHS who were treated at SFH in March, 79 were receiving cancer treatment within two months of their referral. A month previously – when 86 patients were referred – 64 were treated within 62 days.

In March 2022, 64 patients were treated within this period, out of 94 that were referred.

Other figures show 47,727 patients were waiting for non-urgent elective operations or treatment at SFH at the end of March, up from 46,999 in February, and 39,381 in March last year.

The median waiting time from referral at an NHS Trust to treatment at SFH was 11 weeks at the end of March, down from 12 weeks in February.