New Department of Health figures show that UHSM is the only Trust in Greater Manchester to improve its waiting times over the past year. We are proud to be bucking the trend in the region - we treated 89.5% of our patients within the 18 week target period, compared with 82% last February, whereas every other Trust has seen their percentages fall.

In the NHS in England, waiting for hospital treatment is measured from the date when a GP writes a letter asking for a patient to be seen to the date that treatment is started.

The whole process is not meant to take more than 18 weeks – the limit for waiting promised to patients in the NHS constitution. But the target was relaxed by the Coalition government last June, and waiting times at other Trusts have gradually crept up since then.

However, we at UHSM have remained focused on treating our patients as quickly as possible. We believe that reduced waiting times help to sustain a better quality of life for patients, and the efforts of our staff in continuing to strive to see patients in a timely manner are paying dividends.