Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Trust

Health and Social Care – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 6 February 2018.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Melanie Onn Melanie Onn Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government) (Housing) 12:00, 6 February 2018

If he will make an assessment of trends in the time taken between referral and treatment for patients at hospitals in Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust in the past 12 months.

Photo of Steve Barclay Steve Barclay Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

In the past 12 months, the average waiting time for patients to start consultant-led treatment at hospitals in northern Lincolnshire and Goole was about nine weeks. We recognise that some trusts face particular challenges with their waiting lists due to rising demand. That is why a package of support, including a system-wide improvement board, has been established within the trust.

Photo of Melanie Onn Melanie Onn Shadow Minister (Housing, Communities and Local Government) (Housing)

The statistics that the Minister has given are very interesting. The Library has said that there is an average wait of 32 weeks—far longer than the nine weeks that he mentioned—and that it is six weeks longer in 2017 than it was in 2016. This is happening on his watch. What is he going to do? My constituents do not accept that it is good enough.

Photo of Steve Barclay Steve Barclay Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

I think the hon. Lady prepared her follow-up before hearing the answer. There is an improvement board established within the trust, chaired by NHS Improvement, that is tasked with reducing waiting times and ensuring that the standard is improved. Currently, the average time waited is 11 weeks for out-patients and seven weeks for in-patients.

Photo of Martin Vickers Martin Vickers Conservative, Cleethorpes

Will the Minister give an assurance that the support that NHS Improvement is giving to the trust will continue? He will know that this is the second time that the trust has been in special measures, and clearly we need continuing support. Will he also assure us that he will visit the trust—a promise that was made by his predecessor?

Photo of Steve Barclay Steve Barclay Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

My hon. Friend is right to point out the need to give support to this trust. That is why a wider package of £1.6 billion of funding has been given to the NHS to improve accident and emergency and elective care performance. Alongside that, we have specific work through NHS Improvement to address some of the particular issues that he alluded to in his trust.