Northumbria Healthcare not meeting NHS targets for quick start to cancer treatment programmes

National guidelines state treatment should start within 62 days, but only 74.6% of Northumbria Healthcare cancer patients in April and 74.4% in March 2023 were seen in this time frame.

A Northumbria Healthcare spokesperson said: “In Northumbria we are one of the best performing trusts against all the national standards, but clearly we are not where we want to be on this important target.

“The challenges of the past few years have seen the NHS struggle to meet this standard right across the country and the pandemic has had a significant impact on waiting lists and the number of staff available.”

A report presented at the trust’s public board meeting this week on the day-to-day experience of a urology pathway manager, responsible for tracking patient progress at the department, highlighted the reasons for these delays.

The report said: “There are capacity issues and the patient may have to wait for the next available multidisciplinary team where there is time to discuss their case.

“There are set times and days for clinics, and capacity issues and patient numbers feed into the delays patients may experience in receiving a clinic appointment.”

Many of Northumbria Healthcare’s urology cancer patients are referred to Freeman Hospital, which is managed by Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, for surgery or radiotherapy, making communication essential.

The report said: “Patients usually come back to this trust for follow-up appointments or chemotherapy and the transfer between trusts is smooth for the most part.

“We have weekly patient tracking meetings with the Newcastle Trust where we can iron out any issues arising.”

Another report presented to the board detailed a patient’s experience of the urology cancer pathway, and highlighted the impact of communication difficulties.

The patient said: “The urology consultant expected that I had had confirmation from Freeman Hospital but I had not, so he told me the straightforward diagnosis.

“After that I had no contact with the specialist team since July. I do not think there was any communication between the two trusts.”

Their report said a GP-ordered gynaecology scan took place prior to a gynaecology consultant appointment but this was “purely chance,” as the consultant was unaware the scan had been ordered.

Furthermore a rheumatology nurse, a pharmacist, and the GP practice all called the patient about the same blood test results on one occasion, as the computer system only showed the records were accessed, and not that they were actioned.

The patient had “no complaints” about the quality of care and said “everyone was absolutely lovely,” but that “the systems under which people are working do not allow them to do their jobs.”

A Northumbria Healthcare spokesperson said: “On some cancer treatments there are often multiple organisations working together to provide services for patients which can add to the complexity.

“However we remain focused on improving services and ensuring that patients get the best possible care in the most timely way, and all our teams and partners are working closely together to help achieve this.”