A MANAGER at the Royal Bolton Hospital has been demoted after an inquiry found A&E target figures were inaccurate.

The senior member of staff in casualty was disciplined after the irregularities were uncovered during a routine review.

Bosses had to reassess data relating to casualty admissions — and cut their performance figures accordingly.

The hospital is still meeting Government targets of 98 per cent of patients being admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours — but only just.

An inquiry found there was no suggestion the figures were deliberately manipulated.

David Fillingham, chief executive of the hospital trust, said: “This has been a most regrettable occurrence and has upset all staff involved.

“I’m satisfied patient care was not directly affected. The length of time a patient waits in the department is important to their experience.

“We need to make sure we get this and the recording of it right at all times.

“We are committed to improving how we obtain and record information and I will be monitoring this closely.”

Before the investigation, which focused on figures from April to September, the hospital said 98.6 per cent of patients were seen in the allotted time. The figure — an important indicator as to how the trust is performing — was adjusted to 98.1 per cent.

The trust estimates more than 500 people previously recorded as being dealt with within the four-hour period, were not.

This was down to “clock stopping” when patients saw a doctor within A&E, which is against the rules, and inconsistencies in two methods of recording the length of stays — manual and electronic.

A panel investigating the staff involved concluded an unnamed member of staff had permitted and overseen poor recording practices but not with the deliberate intent of falsifying the trust’s position.

The person is still working in casualty but not in a management position.

New procedures have now been introduced, including clearer forms and electronic processes and consistency checks.

The hospital has reported the matter to Monitor, the independent regulator of NHS Foundation Trusts A spokesman for Monitor said: “The Trust is not currently in breach of its authorisation as a foundation trust and has achieved the target for the first three months of 2009/10.

“If the Trust fails to maintain satisfactory performance, we will consider using our regulatory powers to require an improvement.”

The hospital says it is satisfied that recording performance since September has been accurate.

cherry.thomas@theboltonnews.co.uk