Our Service Performance
We are measured on a wide range of KPIs, including quality metrics (such as mortality and health care infections) through to finance and workforce outcomes. Each speciality has their own indicators that they review also. It is hoped to be able to public a performance report publically at regular intervals going forward.
High profile pathway measures are in place for all hospitals and systems, around unscheduled care, elective care and cancer care.
As we embark on our 1st year of transformation 22/23, as at August 2023, we have achieved the following results in our first year;
In Emergency Care, we have focussed on reducing the time ambulances wait at hospital to handover our patients and in turn improve 999 response times in Cork. Despite being one of the busiest EDs in the country for ambulance attendances, we have seen a dramatic improvement, from an average turnaround time in excess of 95 minutes in December 2022 to just 45 minutes in June 2023, and perhaps more importantly the virtual elimination of delays over 2 hours when there were nearly 400 in Dec 2022. From being one of the worst performing Model 4’s we are now one of the best.
Despite attendances being the highest they have been, our 8am Trolley numbers for June and July 2023 are the lowest they have been in at least 4 years (excluding a brief period of 2022 Covid) and now compare favourably with other comparable Model 4 hospitals. The number of patients with a Patient Experience Time (PET) over 24 hours is beginning to reduce, our length of stay is reducing, and working more closely than ever before with our colleagues in CHO4, our number of inpatients over 14 days has reduced, spending from 12,000 bed days in March 2023 to 8,000 in June 2023.
In Elective Care, while waits in many areas remain far too long, we have reduced the Inpatient waiting list (from 6.6 years in August 2022 to 3.7 years in July 2023), the Day Case waiting list (from 6.1 years to 3.8 years). Our Outpatient waiting list has reduced (from 39,000 to 36,000), and the number of patients waiting over 4 years has reduced from 862 to 127 (103 of which are in Ophthalmology which has a significant underlying capacity issue), and we plan to have eliminated all waits over 4 years by the end of the year. Cancellations have also been reduced significantly contributing to improved efficiency. We have also improved endoscopy care, with all P1 cases now seen within the HSE standard of 28 days since Jan 2023, and we have reduced the number of Priority 2 cases waiting over the HSE standard of 9 months, from 37 a year ago to 4 in July 2023, and we expect to be fully compliant within the next few months.
In Cancer Care, Symptomatic Breast performance has improved from 13% in May 2022 (35 patients treated within 10 days) to 78% in May 2023 (228 patients treated within KPI) and no patient now waits longer than 21 days. Routine breast performance is also improving despite a significant increase in referrals. Radiotherapy compliance has improved from 55% in May 2022 to 78% in May 2023.
We know performance is still not where it needs to be at all, and there are other metrics which have yet to improve. We apologise to all patients who have to wait longer than they should have to and when we don’t meet your expectations. We have submitted the necessary capital and workforce plans to address the historic drivers of underperformance, and are working with the HSE to achieve all national KPIs over the next 2-3 years.