New Cross Hospital in vow as patients attack A&E

The trust which runs the Wednesfield site finished bottom of hospitals in the Black Country and Staffordshire according to the patient satisfaction questionnaire which was revealed today.

And in June it was the 13th worst in the country – out of 144.

Patients were asked whether they would recommend A&E and in-patient wards at hospitals to their family and friends.

New Cross's A&E unit has been under severe pressure for months with record patient numbers coming through the doors.

But the results will be a blow to hospital chiefs who have strived to make the department as patient-friendly as possible.

Nine new beds will be added to A&E by November and then a brand new £31m unit is being planned for 2015.

In the three-month survey patients were asked just one question – whether they would recommend A&E to their friends or family based purely on what they had experienced.

At New Cross as many as 21 per cent would not recommend A&E. Trusts could score between -100 and 100 depending on how people rate the service in the friends and family survey – and Wolverhampton's total was 36.

In the region that compared to 81 for the Mid-Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust and 65 for Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust.

The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust scored 61 and Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust scored 51.

Bosses at the Royal Wolverhampton Hospitals NHS Trust said they welcomed the feedback and would review the results alongside other surveys to inform how they could improve services.

Patient experience lead at the trust, Jamie Emery, said: "We go out of our way to seek patient feedback to help us understand how people feel about our service and make sure patients drive improvements at the trust. We want to generate data that is reliable and useful therefore we aim to speak to patients while they are in hospital or after they are discharged."