MORE than 129,000 outpatient appointments were handled by Salisbury District Hospital over the last financial year along with nearly 60,000 cases dealt with by the emergency department.

Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust discussed its performance during its annual general meeting last Monday.

Chief executive Cara Charles-Barks said: “We have continued to be really busy over the last 12 months."

The hospital just missed its target for A&E waiting times, with 93.6 per cent of patients seen within four hours.

Ms Charles-Barks said: “Never in the last 12 months did we drop below the 90 per cent performance [target]. This is in the context where nationally many organisations are sitting around the 80 per cent mark. Despite being busy with increased presentations and requirements for hospital services the hospital continues to improve and are continuing to work really hard on that. Being below 95 per cent isn’t something we aspire to so we are really clear about wanting to constantly improve that.”

The trust handled 129,650 outpatient appointments and the emergency department dealt with 59,505 cases, and 2,300 babies were born at the hospital.

Its target for a six-week wait for diagnostics, such as access to x-rays, MRIs and CTs, saw a “small improvement” but a “huge amount” of work had been done to improve this, she added.

The meeting heard that in March the performance was affected because the MRI scanner was out of action for a few days.

The Stars Appeal is currently fundraising for a second MRI scanner and Ms Charles-Barks said: “This is why it is so crucial. There is a huge demand for that type of investigation and our MRI scanner at the hospital has been in use for sometime. It is time for us to not only replace that one but get a second one so we are able to give you access to the tests that you need as quickly as possible.”

Ms Charles-Barks said the hospital continued to “perform well” in terms of its two-week waiting time for cancer patients, which was just above the 93 per cent target (94.8), and the 62 day wait for treatment was just above the 85 per cent target (86 per cent).

She told the meeting the hospital had “significantly less” incidents of hospital acquired C Difficile, with eight compared to 13 in 2016/17, which she said was a “testament” to its infection control practices and how well they were working.

Incidents of falls resulting in major harm were down from 21 to 17.