Decision details

Following on from recent consideration of the issues surrounding referral to treatment (RTT) and waiting times at both the LBBD Health and Wellbeing Board and Health and Adult Services Select Committee, the Board has requested an update, including a detailed Action Plan for addressing waiting times, as well as progress made on addressing the issue so far.

The Board

(i)  Noted that the number of people waiting for their appointment had now been reviewed and BHRUT confirmed that this now stood at 54,000 patients;

(ii)  Noted that BHRUT had not yet recommenced reporting its Referral to Treatment performance to NHS England;

(iii)  Requested BHRUT to provide an update on patients’ Referral to Treatment waiting times to every Board meeting until the NHS Constitution standard, which gives Patients a legal right to start non-emergency NHS consultant-led treatment within a maximum of 18 weeks following a GP Referral, was achieved and embedded at BHRUT.

(iv)  Suggested that consultation with the Council would have been helpful in drafting the communications with the patients waiting for appointments.  Particular concern was raised in regards to the lack of understanding by patients that alternative treatment provided outside of Queens and King George hospitals would still be paid for via the NHS and that there would be no charge to patients for accessing these services at private facilities

(v)  Reminded BHRUT that the Board was still awaiting details of:

(a)  The numbers of patients in each specialist area and how many of those patients were Barking and Dagenham residents. 

  The Board also now required details of the current number of LBBD residents that were included in the outstanding 54,000: and

(b)  Evidence to substantiate the previous anecdotal claim by BHRUT that patients were prepared to wait longer to be seen within BHRUT rather than being treated by other providers. 

  The Board now also required details of the number of LBBD residents that had already been referred to independent / private providers or non BHRUT hospitals.

(vi)  Reminded BHRUT of the previous request made by the Board for them not use the term ‘waiters’ in their future reports and that ‘patients’ or ‘people’ was more appropriate;