Trust hits cancer targets


MAIDSTONE and Tunbridge Wells hospital trust has celebrated hitting the national 62-day target (85%) for cancer treatments in August and September.


After many months of under-


performance, the latest figures now put it in the top 30 per cent of trusts, a turnaround from the position for 2018. NHS West Kent CCG says it is


encouraged by the results and looks forward to sustained im- provement, so that all patients are seen within 62 days. However, staff recruitment is


proving a challenge for the hospi- tal trust in all areas. In September and August, bank and agency availability was limited and sick- ness rose. This put increased pres- sures on already-stretched staff and contributed to serious inci- dents increasing in August. Overseas recruitment is well


underway, and the first group of nurses are completing examina- tions which will support them to


Good rating for 999 care


THE local ambulance service has improved, especially in timely handling of highest-risk emer- gencies. SECAmb has now been rated


“good” by the Care Quality Com- mission. But although there have been


improvements in categories 1 and 2, West Kent CCG says SECAmb has still some way to go improv- ing category 3 and 4 calls. Patients


sultant within 24 hours of admis- sion”. The trust believes this should


support an improved picture for the three national standards, which at present remain below expectation, and that it will “‘re- duce the risk of harm to patients and improve outcomes”. The backlog of ophthalmology


patients requiring follow-up con- tinues to be an issue for the trust. New guidelines that require pa-


work independently on ward areas. Stroke services for Maidstone


and Tunbridge Wells hospitals are now centred entirely at Maid-


stone, and the hospital trust is re- porting “the service is now much safer, with patients receiving an end-to-end service and improve- ments in seeing a specialist con-


tients taking some medication for rheumatic conditions to have eye check-ups mean that an extra 20- 40 new patients a month will re- quire this service, along with yearly follow-ups. With the backlog already stand-


ing at about 4,000 patients, this will have a significant impact on the already-stretched service.


experiencing longer


than four-hour waits will now be individually reviewed for harm and reported to the CCG quality team. Delays in ambulance handover


of patients to hospitals within the 30-minute standard continue to cause concern and the two trusts are working to meet the target.


Surgery merger


A MERGER has now taken place between Northumberland Court surgery, Shepway, Maid- stone, and the single-handed Grove Park surgery, in Sutton Road, Maidstone. The majority of patients


(about 2,000) are moving to Northumberland Court, which has closed its patient list for 12 months to allow a “bedding-in” period.


34 Maidstone December 2019 Vasectomy funding under review


THE future of NHS-funded va- sectomies and reversals locally is under review. NHS West Kent Clinical Com-


missioning Group (CCG) stopped paying for the proce- dures three years ago. The CCG received a report es- timating £307,000 had


been


saved in the three years. If the CCG elects to re-fund these pro- cedures, a saving elsewhere would need to be found. There are three options under


consideration: The CCG continues not to


fund vasectomies Reinstatement of NHS funding


for vasectomies and vasectomy reversals with immediate effect. The group recommended this option, but it was recognised that there was a risk. Review the decision to rein-


state funding once the Kent and Medway decision was taken. An impact assessment on va-


sectomy funding will be carried out to enable a decision to be made. One factor is the cost of health problems for women tak- ing oral contraceptives.


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