Dudley NHS Trust to be investigated as finances reveal £6.7 million deficit
A hospital trust will be investigated over missing A&E targets and the 'deterioration' of its finances after it was revealed it was facing a deficit of £6.7million.
The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Russells Hall Hospital, will be probed after it 'consistently failed' to meet its targets for A&E, according to NHS watchdog Monitor.
The organisation says that the trust has not met the national target of seeing 95 per cent of patients within four hours at A&E in four of the last five financial quarters.
Monitor also said it had concerns about the financial performance at the trust.
It comes after the hospital trust said it was facing an increased demand for services and that rising pension costs and recruitment of overseas nurses were among the factors behind the deficit.
Bosses said they were facing a fourth successive freeze in budget funding and were required to make up to £12million in savings a year.
