UNDER-pressure hospitals in Worcestershire are falling well short of their most crucial healthcare targets, including A&E and cancer waiting times.

One of the most important targets for Worcestershire Royal Hospital in Worcester is to treat, admit or discharge at least 95 per cent of emergency patients within four hours of their arrival at A&E.

However, Worcestershire Acute Trust, which runs the hospital, has not hit this target for more than a year – with the figure dropping to 78.9 per cent during November.

Although the figures for December and January have yet to be published, the trust is not likely to hit the 95 per cent target as these months have seen significant pressures in terms of both the numbers of patients and the severity of the conditions they have been arriving at emergency departments with.

The 18-week referral to treatment target which stipulates that at least 92 per cent of patients referred to the hospital should be treated within 18 weeks of the referral has been missed between February and November last year.

As of November the figure had slumped to 85 per cent from a high of 92 per cent the previous November.

The clock starts on the day the hospital receives the referral letter or on the day a patient makes their booking for their first appointment via the choose and book service.

As of November, the latest published figures, two patients had been waiting more than 52 weeks.

Cancer patients are also waiting longer than they should be. The target is that at least 85 per cent of patients diagnosed with cancer should wait no more than 62 days for their first treatment following an urgent GP referral.

This slumped to a low of 66 per cent in August last year, climbing to 75 per cent last November but still well below the 85 per cent target.

Stroke care also continues to be under performance when set against the national standard.

So patients enjoy the best possible chance of recovery and to decrease the risk of death or permanent disability at least 80 per cent of stroke patients should spend 90 per cent of their time on a dedicated stroke ward.

But only 54 per cent of patients in Worcestershire hospitals were cared for in a stroke bed last October.

Another key stroke target is that 90 per cent of patients should be admitted directly to a stroke ward within four hours of arriving at hospital.

But this figure was only 23 per cent for Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust in October.

Although that is the third successive month the trust has seen improvement this remains well below target.