A NEW out-of-hours block has this week been opened at Leighton Hospital as part of measures to improve the handling of emergency patients.

Health bosses in charge of the Crewe hospital were summoned to London by the Department of Health after the A&E department failed to meet government targets for treating patients.

The government expects the hospital to treat and discharge 98 per cent of patients within four hours, but that figure fell to 92 per cent two weeks ago.

Representatives of Central Cheshire Primary Care Trust and Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust were called to London to explain their failure, and have been working with the Department of Health to improve the service.

The new out-of-hours block, which will be housed in modern portable buildings next to the accident and emergency department, is expected to improve efficiency.

The hospital's failure to meet its target has been blamed on a surge in patient numbers and a shortage of beds.

Bill Forsyth, chair of the professional executive committee, which advises the Primary Care Trust, said: "It's true that a part of this problem has been the shortage of beds to meet the demand.

"There has been a surge in the number of people requiring emergency aid in the last couple of months, so the hospital has struggled to find beds in some cases.

"The screw has really been turned with the increase in patient admissions, and this is one factor that has caused the hospital to miss its target.

"We are looking at ways to reduce the number of patients admitted and improving the efficiency with which patients are handled."

Health chiefs hope the new out-of-hours block will be a step towards improved efficiency.

The current out-of-hours centre, next to the hospital's urology outpatient's department, has been closed to make way for the new block.

Mr Forsyth said it would help the hospital treat patients in a more integrated way.

He explained: "The idea is to have a hub for emergency and unplanned treatment at the front of the hospital.

"It will effectively place all the important players in emergency treatment under one roof.

"At the moment, it can be confusing for patients deciding which service to go to, and many go to the wrong place.

"The aim of this is to have everything in the same place, so it'll all be much slicker."

Mandy Donald, director of service development for Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "Staff are continuing to work very hard to provide care to patients within the target time of four hours."