23.11.12
Monitor taking action at CUH
Monitor is to step in at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS FT due to its “successive failure” to hit targets and multiple patient safety incidents.
The regulator said the trust is in “significant breach” of its terms of authorisation.
Monitor has taken regulatory action at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust to improve the quality and organisation of healthcare, after failures on waiting times for cancer treatment and A&E performance.
The trust’s board has not dealt adequately with the range of issues it faces, Monitor said.
Its director of provider regulation Stephen Hay said: “This is not the first time we have called the trust in to explain itself. We are disappointed that the board has not resolved these issues. We note the trust has a new chair [Jane Ramsey started work on November 1] and will shortly appoint a new chief executive. We expect them to demonstrate they are getting the trust back on track as quickly as possible.”
Monitor is forcing the trust to commission a board governance and effectiveness review and has instructed it to appoint an experienced turnaround expert at board level.
If the situation is not resolved within the agreed timescales, Monitor may decide to use its regulatory powers and take “further action”, it said.
CUH chairman, Jane Ramsey, said: “We take Monitor’s concerns very seriously and we are determined to reverse the situation as soon as possible. My top priority, as the new chairman, will be to get to grips with these performance issues with my team and we will be setting up a taskforce to swiftly get back on track. We will be focussing on turning this trust around, so once more we can be justifiably proud of our record as one of the leading trusts in the country.
“We are working to improve our performance on meeting targets every month but we know we could do better. We are treating more people than ever before and our health outcomes are amongst the best in the country. I am committed to retaining this achievement but also to meeting the standards that are required. Our priority remains the care of our patients – they are at the heart of everything we do.”
Giving reasons for the intervention, Monitor explained that CUH missed its 62 day cancer (GP referral) target for the third consecutive quarter (at quarter one). The trust’s performance was 78.1% against a target of 85%. The 62 day cancer targets have been breached in seven of the last eight quarters to Q1 12/13.
At quarter one the trust had missed its referral to treatment (RTT) target (admitted) for the second time in a row. The trust’s performance of 85.9% was against a target of 90%.
Also the trust missed its A&E target for two quarters in a row. It achieved 92.5% against a target of 95% at quarter one.
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