Scans and tests waiting times plummet at hospitals
Patients are now receiving the care they need sooner, thanks to a huge reduction in the waiting list for tests and scans at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust (SaTH), which runs the county’s acute hospitals.
The Trust is now performing in the top half of the country for the proportion of patients who wait less than six weeks for their diagnostic test.
In July 2025, the Trust recorded its best diagnostic performance in over five years. The latest figures show that 82.1% of patients were seen within six weeks for a diagnostic test.
The number of people waiting more than 13 weeks for a test has also seen an 87% reduction. Furthermore, the overall number of patients waiting for a diagnostic test has dropped by 40% in the last year.
These improvements are a direct result of adding extra scanning and reporting capacity, along with the hard work of the Trust’s dedicated teams. Diagnostic tests are carried out across the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford, and the Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) at Stafford Park, Telford.
Overall waiting times for cancer imaging diagnostics have also seen an upturn. The performance against the cancer Faster Diagnosis Standard (FDS) in July was the best in 18 months. This national target aims for a patient with suspected cancer to wait no more than 28 days from referral to finding out their results.
The Trust also saw a better performance in the cancer 62-day referral to treatment measure. The July performance was the best in more than three years, and the number of patients currently waiting more than 62 days is the lowest for over four years.
The purpose-built CDC, which opened its doors in October 2023 at Stafford Park, is significantly increasing the number of diagnostic tests and scans available. Services include Cardiorespiratory, Phlebotomy, Radiology (CT, X-ray, ultrasound, and MRI) and teledermatology. The centre is currently open six days a week, with the aim of being open 12 hours a day, seven days a week.
Chief Operating Officer Ned Hobbs acknowledged the ongoing efforts of staff.
“Whilst we are making progress, we are humble and know we have more to do,” he said.
“Behind every number is a person and their family, and that is what drives our improvement work. We want to reduce waiting times to ensure our patients receive a diagnosis as quickly as possible, and that everyone has the best care and experience whilst using our services.
“A big thank you to our fantastic teams whose commitment and dedication to our patients has been key in driving our improvements.”
A significant investment that is supporting these improvements is the new linear accelerator machine (LINAC) which is now operational at the Royal Shrewsbury Hospital. The state-of-the-art LINAC is essential for cancer treatment, as it delivers high-energy X-rays or electrons precisely to the tumour, while limiting the radiation dose to healthy tissue.
