THE trust which runs hospitals across Hampshire failed to meet a Government target of ensuring that 95 per cent of patients spend fewer than four hours in the emergency department.

More patients than ever are coming through the doors of the emergency departments, and Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Basingstoke, Andover and Winchester hospitals, has seen a rise of nearly eight per cent in patient numbers in the last year.

As previously reported, the trust has implemented a number of measures to try and ease the pressure, and GPs now work side-by-side with casualty doctors.

The system, along with other measures, dramatically improved the performance of the trust, which was once rated as third worst in the country for long waiting times.

However, HHFT missed the target in October, with 94.4 per cent of people spending less than four hours in Emergency Departments.

David French, chief financial officer at HHFT, told a board of directors meeting that the performance had since improved, and said the trust should now hit the 95 per cent target for the third quarter of the year.