More than 500 urgent operations have been cancelled at St Mary’s Hospital in the last two years.
According to figures published by NHS England, 540 urgent operations were cancelled between November 2017 and November 2019 — and 66 of those were cancelled for the second time or more.
In the first year, 138 operations were cancelled. That figure rocketed in the second year, to 383.
The number of operations cancelled multiple times also leapt, from 14 in the first year to 49.
Some patients have been offered to transfer their operations to hospitals in Portsmouth or Southampton, where waiting times are shorter.
NHS England postponed surgery
In January 2018, NHS England took unprecedented steps to postpone all planned surgery for a month to help relieve pressure on accident and emergency departments, concentrating resources on patients who needed emergency treatment.
Nationally, the move resulted in the cancellation of around 50,000 operations after 12 NHS trusts declared the maximum state of emergency following a spike in winter flu.
More than 400 operations went ahead as planned
A spokesperson for the Isle of Wight NHS Trust said 400 more operations have been carried this year than in the same period in 2018/19.
The spokesperson said,
“We know how important good quality NHS services are to local people and we are working flat out to improve things for our community.
“We apologise unreservedly to anyone who has experience delays in their surgery.
“Cancelling someone’s operation is not a decision taken lightly because we know how crucial it is that people are treated quickly.
“We have seen an increase in demand for emergency surgery on the Island and this has led to a rise in cancellations to allow more urgent surgery to take place.
“We are working very hard to make sure that people who need urgent operations get them as soon as possible.”
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may be been made by OnTheWight. Ed
