Torbay cancer services rated highly

Cancer services at Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust have once again been rated highly by local adults in the latest National Cancer Patient Experience Survey.

The survey, which is overseen by a national cancer patient experience advisory group, and commissioned and managed by NHS England, invited people who had received their care from 132 NHS trusts from across the country to share their thoughts on the care they had received.

More than 600 people with a confirmed primary diagnosis of cancer who had received their care from Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust from April to June 2023 took part. This was a 61% response rate, and the second year in a row where nearly all of the results scored higher than the national average.

Waiting for a diagnostic test can be worrying, but 94% of people said they were given the information and support they needed before their appointment, and 76% of people said they felt able to talk about their needs of concerns before their treatment began.

A significant amount of work has taken place in Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust to reduce the time people are waiting to be seen, receive their results and begin their treatment, and 80% of people who responded said they waited about the right amount of time; 89% of people said they felt the length of time they waited at clinical and day units for treatment was about right.

They said they were happy that diagnostic staff had the information they needed about them before their tests, and said their results were explained in ways that they understood.

Dr Liz Thomas, Clinical Director of Cancer Services at Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Listening to the experiences of people who use our services is important to us and I am so pleased to see the hard work and dedication of our people to provide safe, compassionate, high-quality care is reflected in these survey results.

“We understand how worrying it can be to wait for a diagnosis of cancer, and I am so proud of our teams who work incredibly hard to see, diagnose and treat people as quickly as possible. The investment in our cancer services, including our new £2.8 million radiotherapy planning CT suite at Torbay Hospital and mobile screening unit at Dartmouth Health and Wellbeing Centre are already making huge improvements in the way we provide care.

“As a result of our people’s hard work, we are one of the 20 best NHS hospital trusts in the country for cancer performance and one of just a handful to have met the faster diagnosis standard for more than 19 months.

“We strive to make people’s experiences of our services as best as we can, and these fantastic results are a testament to our values and commitment.”

The full report for Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust is available on the National Cancer Patient Experience Survey website.