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Swindon's A&E is the best in the country
11:20am Thursday 3rd July 2008
Comments (24)THE accident and emergency department at the Great Western Hospital is officially the most efficient in the country.
This was the verdict of the Strategic Health Authority on figures for the last three months.
To meet Government targets hospitals must deal with 98 per cent of emergency patients within four hours.
GWH has been constantly above this and, for the last three months, 99.74 per cent of patients have been seen within four hours.
Of those 60 per cent are seen in under two hours and, over several weeks, the hospital had no cases waiting over the time.
Dr Alf Troughton, the medical director of the hospital, said: "This improvement is down to Dr Kash Aujla, consultant in the emergency department, and all his staff who have worked incredibly hard to transform the quality of treatment."
The hospital made the leap from the 124th ranking to the top spot in just a year.
The waiting figures are based on when a patient has passed through the emergency system, meaning they have been assessed, treated and admitted as an in-patient or treated and sent home.
On an average week the department will deal with about 1,200 patients a week.
Half of those will be suffering from minor injuries and the other half will be people who come in on stretchers with major injuries.
Dr Aujla said: "It's been hard work to get to this level and now our task is to maintain this performance."
Hospital emergency departments are dependent on many factors to make these figures, such as delayed transfers of care within the hospital - patients who are in hospital but are unable to leave because outside care has not been made available.
Dr Troughton added: "This is something the A and E department are set, but I think to do it the whole hospital has to work together - we have to have to have an empty bed on the ward for a patient to be admitted."
Dr Troughton said one factor in their success was that surgeons and specialists were much quicker at coming to patients down in A and E, partly because of progress chasers employed to ensure the department keeps to time.
The hospital has also re-examined its processes to see if it could be more efficient and increase the number of nurses in the department.
"I think people have genuinely worked much harder everybody has seen the importance of it and has pulled out all the stops," said Dr Troughton.
"If you thought you had to wait for six hours you'd be pretty miserable, so to know it will be done within four hours is better.
"It's a sensible target that most members of the public would agree was important."
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LordBelacqua, Swindon says...
11:40am Thu 3 Jul 08
The figures have been taken over the last 3 months.
You don't think it might just have improved since then?
Jacko, swindon area says...
11:47am Thu 3 Jul 08
Meldrews Dad wrote:I understand exactlly how you feel. Your lucky to survive.
Yet another "target" driven award. Tell the truth about GWH it should be closed, staff retrained and only opened again when it can offer a decent service to the population. I had the misfortune to have to use A and E once, four years ago, and suffered an incompetent diagnosis, a nurse taking blood without gloves, an arrogance that was beyond belief and suprise when I walked out absolutely disgusted. Never again do I set foot in GWH as a patient.
Frontier(s), says...
11:51am Thu 3 Jul 08
It'd be interesting to see the figures for the rest of the hospital as a whole.
Loft Conversions, Swindon says...
11:51am Thu 3 Jul 08
Personally I've always had top class service there, as has everyone I've spoken to.
Dosomethingmutley, Hanger 14 Swindon says...
12:03pm Thu 3 Jul 08
My wife has just had a serious operation and her care and treatment have been first rate.
My daughter had complications during her recent pregnancy and again, the treatment, care and staff were superb.
Enough said!!
Casual Observer, Swindon says...
12:05pm Thu 3 Jul 08
Dealing with the general public is never going to be sweetness and light all the time but some staff show a staggering beligerance no matter how nice you are to them. Always in full view of the many signs warning the public not to abuse the staff.
Sometimes I honestly think they ask for it.
PaulD, says...
12:08pm Thu 3 Jul 08
a nurse taking blood without gloves
You can always ask a nurse or doctor to wear or change their gloves.
Frontier(s), says...
12:51pm Thu 3 Jul 08
Sometimes I honestly think they ask for it.
It's a bit like the police. They are forever begging for help from the 'community' but then always insist on speaking to law-abiding people as if they're either murderers or just plain poo on their shoes.
Adder, Swindon says...
12:56pm Thu 3 Jul 08
Frontier(s), says...
1:08pm Thu 3 Jul 08
That's the problem with government targets - the people who are drafted in to 'meet' them know how to get round them.
katyp333, stoke-on-trent says...
1:16pm Thu 3 Jul 08
roy bezzant, swindon says...
1:47pm Thu 3 Jul 08
Bea, Swindon says...
3:04pm Thu 3 Jul 08
They even had a plastic surgeon available there when we got there to make sure she didn't damage it too much and need further surgery.
A fantastic hospital. Use GWH - not a chance.
swindon1983, Swindon says...
3:43pm Thu 3 Jul 08
Al Smith, Swindon, UK says...
4:34pm Thu 3 Jul 08
wendy, swindon says...
4:34pm Thu 3 Jul 08
sianw50, calne says...
5:17pm Thu 3 Jul 08
i had a drip put in and the had an anti sickness drug put in that and it was so painful i screamed. then then put saline in after about 10 mins i told someone that it was agony and i was told it was saline working its way through i told 2 people and they said same thing
i was then left for 2 hours while my arm went dead and was swollen to 3 times its size as i was attached to bed i couldn't move and after 2 hours a nurse heard me crying saw my arm and got someone else who said
" oh that shouldn't be like that" and then took the drip out
2 hours later the docs were looking in a medical book to see if it was ok to put the drug in my arm and not my vein and it was a few days before my arm went down.
i had no apologes or anything
Jacko, swindon area says...
5:35pm Thu 3 Jul 08
sianw50 wrote:Sounds like you have a perfectly good case for negligence
i went in when i had a burst cyst i had a drip put in and the had an anti sickness drug put in that and it was so painful i screamed. then then put saline in after about 10 mins i told someone that it was agony and i was told it was saline working its way through i told 2 people and they said same thing i was then left for 2 hours while my arm went dead and was swollen to 3 times its size as i was attached to bed i couldn't move and after 2 hours a nurse heard me crying saw my arm and got someone else who said " oh that shouldn't be like that" and then took the drip out 2 hours later the docs were looking in a medical book to see if it was ok to put the drug in my arm and not my vein and it was a few days before my arm went down. i had no apologes or anything
Al Smith, Swindon, UK says...
8:49pm Thu 3 Jul 08
Wendy, I see you use the word "some", I would say "most" people have had an OK experience. It's just that someone who has had a bad experience will shout about it far more than someone whose experience was fine or brilliant.
Captain Sensible, Near Swindon says...
7:49am Fri 4 Jul 08
Frontier(s), says...
9:00am Fri 4 Jul 08
roy bezzant wrote:Oh, Roy, you clearly don't read my posts very often.
Frontier(s).You appear to want to kknock all the public services.I suggest you aim your bullets at thier masters the government and not the people who try and thier jobs albeit under the constaints the government put on them.
I have no doubt whatsoever who is ultimately to blame for the state of our vastly expensive public services.
However, you can't deny that some civil servants (police, council officials etc.) don't make their lives any easier by generally being as condescending as they possibly can.
mr, swindon says...
9:00am Fri 4 Jul 08
HER_IN_DOORS, Swindon says...
8:08am Sun 6 Jul 08
I have always had excellent service from the staff but then I suppose I understand their frustrations and always have a kind word and a smile. They are only doing their job to the best of their ability. I also noted on the last visit that good english was widly spoken - now that is an improvement!!
GWH medical director Dr Alf Troughton
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Meldrews Dad, Wroughton says...
11:36am Thu 3 Jul 08
I had the misfortune to have to use A and E once, four years ago, and suffered an incompetent diagnosis, a nurse taking blood without gloves, an arrogance that was beyond belief and suprise when I walked out absolutely disgusted.
Never again do I set foot in GWH as a patient.