OPERATION cancellations have almost doubled within a year at Oxfordshire’s hospitals as bosses admit the service is constantly running close to maximum capacity.

Dr Tony Berendt, medical director at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH), said this winter, which saw non-urgent operations delayed on three occasions and a ‘black alert’ raised in January, had been a hard one for the trust.

He said: “It has been a challenging time for us this winter and I think that is reflected in the periods we have had to step up to the highest escalation level. That is not something we have previously had to do.”

The latest available figures from the trust show that between December 2017 and the end of February 2018, OUH postponed 263 non-urgent operations – compared with 177 for the same period last year.

The pressure facing staff at the trust, which runs the John Radcliffe Hospital as well as the Churchill Hospital, Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Oxford and the Horton General Hospital in Banbury, is even more stark in annual figures that show between the end of February 2017 and February 2018, it postponed 952 non-urgent operations, compared with 536 the year before.

Dr Berendt said cancelling non-urgent operations was never something OUH wanted to do but it had to ensure the safety of those needing emergency care. He also reiterated apologies to patients affected, especially by repeated delays.

He added the trust was already improving systems for next year but did not rule out the possibly it would have to cancel surgeries again, saying: “When you have a system constantly running close to maximum it doesn’t take much to throw the whole system out.”

He identified staff shortages, bed-blocking and a high number of flu cases as factors that had pushed the trust past its limit this winter.

Dr Berendt rejected the idea that more money alone would solve the problem, however, saying there were ‘no simple solutions’ but better home-based care and a more fully integrated system between local health services could improve the situation in the long term.

Paul Brennan, OUH director of clinical services, echoed this adding: “The health and social care system in Oxfordshire remains focused on developing and growing home-based services, as we know many patients in our acute and community hospitals could be more appropriately cared for at home, easing the pressures on our emergency departments.”