County NHS service in good health (From Daily Echo)

Hampshire's NHS service in good health, says Andrew Lansley

12:28pm Thursday 5th July 2012 in Politics

Andrew Lansley

THE HEALTH Secretary has told patients across Hampshire that their NHS is in “excellent shape” after a turbulent year.

Andrew Lansley made the first annual report to MPs on the state of the health service in Parliament yesterday.

There was a 100 per cent drop in MRSA cases reported by Hampshire Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester.

At Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust the number remained the same, with five cases last year.

Cases of another superbug, C.

Difficile, were down by 56.8 per cent in Hampshire and 27 per cent in Southampton, to 65 in 2011/12.

Progress was also reported in stamping out mixed sex accommodation in hospitals in the region.

Mr Lansley told the Daily Echo his first “annual report”

would show an NHS in rude health – despite the doommongers who claim a £20 billion cash squeeze has placed it in peril.

He said: “The performance has been excellent and credit for that goes to NHS staff.

“If you look at waiting times, for example, the average wait was eight weeks – which is lower than at the last General Election.”