Urgent action needed over health trust, Telford council leader warns
Urgent action needs to be taken in the way the trust that runs Shropshire's two main hospitals is managed, the leader of Telford & Wrekin has warned.
Councillor Shaun Davies said the Government needed to step in to provide support and resources to the Shropshire and Telford Hospitals Trust (SaTH) as soon as possible.
Last year the trust was placed in special measures over patient care.
The latest conditions placed on the trust include requiring it to implement an effective system to assess all children presenting at its emergency departments within 15 minutes of arrival, as well as ensuring it has the right numbers and mix of staff on duty to undertake triage and escalate clinical risks in a timely way.
The CQC visit in April highlighted concerns about children leaving the department without having received appropriate clinical assessment, too many people waiting too long to be seen by staff, insufficient protection for patients with mental health issues and having “not always robust enough'' monitoring of people suspected of having sepsis, a concern raised at the previous inspection.
Councillor Davies said: “The council has been raising concerns with the Government and NHS about how SaTH is run now for a number of years.
“We welcome recent changes in senior management at the Trust but these will take time to have an effect and that is why urgent action, support and resources are needed now.
“Government ministers must take a personal and very close interest in what’s happening at SaTH because we have been warning them and NHS senior managers about it for years.
“We want best healthcare for our area as possible. In so many ways we are supporting our hospital and the hard working staff there who face very difficult challenges.
“We continue to stand by ready to support them and help turn this situation around.”
The trust apologised for the failings and said that a number of improvements and measures have been taken since the inspection.
