Shropshire hospital trust 'hugely proud' as data reveals 'phenomenal' progress slashing waiting times

A new waiting times dashboard launched this week allows people to see waiting times in local hospitals across England - and track the progress of local systems working to improve the rate of treatment.

The new platform shows how the number of people waiting for treatment across all providers in the Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin system has fallen by more than 21 per cent since last year, while the number of patients waiting longest (over a year or more) has fallen by almost 83 per cent in a year.

The progress came despite the NHS’s busiest ever year, with 431,000 attendances at Midlands emergency departments in December alone.

SaTH said it has reduced the number of patients waiting longer than a year for treatment by almost 98 per cent since November 2024 and reduced the overall number of patients waiting for treatment by 30 per cent in the last year.

The trust also states it is creating additional inpatient and acute assessment capacity at both Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, which will improve access to urgent and emergency care and protect elective capacity during the winter months, and in the future.

Ned Hobbs, chief operating officer, said: “The progress we have made is phenomenal and we are hugely proud of our clinical and operational teams who have worked tirelessly on improvements to reduce the length of time our patients are waiting for treatment. 

“There is still more work for us to do, but we are striving to ensure that every patient has access to timely treatment. We are investing in additional urgent and emergency care capacity, and new equipment to further enhance productivity in outpatients, diagnostics and theatres.”