Ambulances lost more than 6,000 hours stuck outside Black Country hospitals in May as handover delays worsened, new figures reveal. The total hours lost over 15 minutes at A&E departments rose from 4,841 in April to 6,162 in May, nearly double the 3,205 hours recorded in May last year.
Worst-Performing Trusts
The worst affected trust was Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, which saw 2,364 hours lost. The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust followed closely with 2,296 hours. Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust lost 1,280 hours, while Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust reported 221 hours lost.
The data will be presented to the Birmingham and Solihull and Black Country NHS Joint ICB Cluster Board on Monday, July 13, as part of a review of urgent and emergency care performance.
Urgent Need for Improvement
The report to the board highlighted an "urgent need to address lost hours for handovers." It noted that a 45-minute maximum handover target was introduced on February 26, and all trusts are working toward that goal.
The report stated: "Out of Hospital and UEC programme are working collaboratively to ensure that hospital avoidance pathways are being fully utilised. Performance and activity continues to be monitored daily by the Strategic Command Centre."
Real-Time Monitoring
The team has full access to SHREWD, a live stream system that monitors A&E, ambulance, 111, admissions, discharges, patient transport, and virtual ward capacity. Silver calls are in place twice daily to address any pressures in real time.
