MP voices concerns over elective surgery delays
An MP says he is concerned about delays in patients waiting for elective orthopaedic surgery at a county hospital.
Wrekin MP, Mark Pritchard, has raised concerns about the situation at the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford.
He said the hospital's elective orthopaedic ward is currently being used to cope with high levels of emergency admissions rather than for elective orthopaedic surgery such as hip and knee replacements.
The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH) has not yet confirmed a date for the restart of elective orthopaedic surgery.
SaTH representatives have confirmed that they are speaking to colleagues at the Robert Jones & Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital (RJAH) near Oswestry about securing regular monthly operating lists at RJAH between now and the end of March 2023.
The option of having elective orthopaedic surgery at RJAH would initially be available to patients who have been waiting for 78 weeks or longer.
Mr Pritchard said: "I have written to the Chief Executives of SaTH and the local Integrated Care System to raise my concerns about how long some of my constituents are having to wait for hip replacements and other orthopaedic surgery.
"We need the elective orthopaedic ward at PRH to reopen as soon as possible. However, until the pressure on beds at PRH subsides, I am calling on our local healthcare leaders to find a temporary solution at pace to allow local patients to have surgery elsewhere in the county such as RJAH."
