News
downsmail.co.uk Cancer targets ‘back on track’
THEMaidstone and TunbridgeWellsNHS Trust has hit its targets for cancer treatment for the first time in five years.
Figures just released show that
85% of those on a waiting list re- ceived medical care within two months of a referral froma GP. This is in line with the national
standard and the trust’s boss said speed of treatment delivery is “re- ally important” to patients. Trust chief executive Miles
Scott said: “It’s been our priority to get our cancer treatment wait- ing times back on track, so I’mde- lighted that we’ve achieved what we set out to do – and earlier than we anticipated too. “Thismeanswe are nowseeing
and treatingmore of our patients quicker, ensuring people who have been diagnosed with cancer get access to the treatment and care they need. “We know from what our pa-
Job lost after
a night out A DRUNKEN sales consultant crashed her company car into a tree nearly three times the drink drive limit after a night out, a court heard. Awitness hadseenElsbethPope
(25) swerve into the tree in Ul- combe Hill on July 18 and sus- pected she had been drinking. The court heardPope lost her job
as a result of the offence and was “struggling” to come to termswith being unemployed. Prosecuting, Julie Farbrace said:
“At around 10pm, amember of the public sawMissPope’s FiatAbarth swerving across the road and hit- ting a tree. A roadside breathtest indicated she was 91mg, nearly three times the limit (35mg).” Maidstone Magistrates Court
heard Pope had gone to theMalta Inn afterwork. Defending, Tobias Burroughs
said: “She had two large glasses of wine. She felt okay to drive when she got in her car, but she is thank- ful shewasn’t injuredanddidn’t in- jure anybody else. The company car she was driving is a write-off andher bosseswerenot impressed. Pope, of The Acorns, Smarden,
pleaded guilty to drink-driving and was given a 12-month com- munity order, 40 hours unpaid work and a £175 fine. Shewas also disqualified from driving for 24 months.
24 Maidstone November 2019 Friends donate scanners
THE League of Friends have again stepped up to help buy vital equipment for Maidstone Hospi- tal. This time the donation of nearly
£80,000 was for two state-of-the- art ultrasound scanners for inten- sive care. One will be based at Maidstone hospital, while the other will be at Pembury. The donation was a joint dona-
tion from both Maidstone Hospi- tal and TunbridgeWells League of Friends. The machines are expected to
benefit up to 1,000 patients a year by providing staff with a closer look at activity in the heart, lungs, abdomen and blood vessels. Pembury’s league of friends’
chairman, Gary Purdy (left), took the chance to watch a short demonstration of the machine, when hemet with the trust’s con- sultant in anaesthesia and inten- sive care medicine, Dr Nikhail Balani. The scans also allows specialists
to diagnose the causes of heart failure; and identify infections deep in the body. Mr Purdy said: “We are all volun-
teers at the League, and to be able to give a piece of equipment like this and to see the ground-break- ing work it is doing is very reward- ing. “We do try to spend the money
where we can make the most im- pact.”
them and this is important to us too. Delivering the standard means we’re meeting what our patientswant.” The trust had previously not hit
their targets since 2015. Chief of service for cancer, Dr
Henry Taylor, added: “This achievement is a result of a huge effort from all clinical staff work- ing alongside a dedicated admin- istrative team to provide the best possible care for our patients throughout their cancer journey. “Our progress has been out-
standing, butwe remain commit- ted to further improvement to ensurewe deliver the best for our patients. “We should never forget that
tients tell us that timeliness of treatment is really important to
whilst time to treatment is an im- portant measure of how well our
services are performing, MTW has always maintained its excel- lent track record in patient expe- rience and outcomes from treatment. “We provide some of the most
advanced cancer care in the coun- try, fromoffering patients the op- portunity to get involved with ground-breaking clinical trials to highly technical radiotherapy techniques.” Mr Scott joined in December
2017 at a time of uncertainty for the trust after working for NHS Improvement,where he had been improvement director for the pre- vious 18months. Before that, Mr Scott was He
was chief executive of StGeorge’s University Hospitals Foundation Trust from2011 to 2016.
Horror night
TEENAGERS can use their talents to escape the ghostly confines of Maidstone Museum on Hal- loween (October 31). The museum’s guides will be
leading those aged 12-16 on “an apparently normal tour of the buildings”
from6-7pm.However, the Grey Lady haunts the prem- ises and other things lurk in the dark... Groups must complete a series
of puzzles in order to escape. Tickets are £6 each.
Pub name talk
PAUL Cullen considers fresh re- search and the history of pub names in Kent at Maidstone li- brary. As the English Place-Name So-
ciety’s editor, his academic back- ground is in historical linguistics, especially Old English, Old Scan- dinavian, and Old French. He is known to dozens as the folk trou- badour, Paul Carbuncle. The talk – Kent Inn Names –
runs from1-2pmonMonday,Oc- tober
28.Admission is free.
Market date
MAIDSTONE Farmers’Market is in Jubilee Square from10am-2pm on Friday, October 25. Local producers assemble here
in the centre of town on the fourth Friday of everymonth.
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