Sharp rise in complaints at hospital trust

There has been a sharp increase in the number of complaints from members of the public about Derby and Burton hospitals, amid ongoing struggles to meet targets in key areas.

According to recent board papers, the Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust (UHDB) received 1,800 complaints in 2025/26, a 40% year-on-year increase.

The trust's performance on complaint response times was also well below target, at about 37% against a target of 85%, triggering repeated performance alerts.

The trust said it took complaints seriously and used feedback to improve services.

The trust acknowledged at a meeting of its board last month that timeliness in dealing with complaints "continues to present a significant challenge" due to a backlog.

As of June, there were 728 open complaints, including 95 unresolved for more than six months.

It comes as the trust struggles to meet targets in a number of key areas.

Ongoing issues with cancer diagnosis remain, with performance substantially below both the trust's own planned trajectory and national performance.

About 61% of patients started cancer treatment within 62 days of an urgent referral, the NHS's cancer treatment standard.

Its own planned trajectory was 71%, while the national standard is 70%.

The trust said reasons for this included capacity shortages and pressures on breast cancer services.

Chief executive Stephen Posey said cancer performance remained a "significant focus".

The trust has been monitored by NHS England for its performance on cancer diagnostics and is having to attend fortnightly meetings to track progress.

It has been among the most challenged NHS trusts for its performance on cancer over the past few years, however did manage to meet the national standard for a period last year.

Posey also expressed concern in the meeting about diagnostic performance.

In May, 67% of patients were seen for planned tests within the six-week diagnostic standard for referrals, against a target to reach 80% by early next year.

Additional MRI and ultrasound capacity is being put in place to help improve performance, the trust said.

A&E waiting times are also a challenge. In May, 69.5% of patients were seen within the NHS four-hour waiting time target.

The trust has also had to issue an apology over cardiac MRI scan reporting failures.

More than 1,000 cardiac MRI scans were reviewed after concerns about reporting accuracy.

The trust said most patients suffered low or no harm, however a handful suffered moderate or severe harm.

The single severe harm case involved a missed diagnosis and a subsequent death.

"We are very sorry this happened, and for the distress and harm caused to those affected.

"We also recognise that the review took too long, and that communication with some patients was not as clear or supportive as it should have been," the trust said.

A UHDB spokesperson said: "Every patient deserves timely, high-quality care, and while more than 90% of people tell us they are happy with the care they receive, we know that is not everyone's experience and we are sorry when we do not get things right.

"Like many NHS organisations, we are seeing growing demand for services - with around 2,000 more cancer referrals than last year - and although our staff are working incredibly hard to keep pace, we recognise that some patients are waiting longer than they should.

"In response, we have increased capacity across our cancer, surgical and diagnostic services, including additional MRI scans, and are working to speed up results so more patients can access the care they need sooner.

"We appreciate that behind every complaint is a person whose experience was not what it should have been, and when people take the time to share their concerns, we take that seriously, listen and try to use that feedback to help improve our services."

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