North Bedfordshire MP praises staff at The Manor Hospital helping to bring down waiting lists

Mr Fuller visited the hospital run by Circle Health Group to understand more about the Patient Choice framework.

As one of Bedford’s leading private hospitals, the 19-bed hospital located on Church End Road offers fast access to a range of treatments to NHS, privately insured and self-pay patients. Since it opened in 1983, the privately run hospital has been an essential part of the local healthcare economy, working closely with NHS commissioners to improve access and slash waiting times in Mr Fuller’s constituency.

Last inspected by the hospital regulator, the CQC, in 2018 The Manor Hospital was rated ‘Good’ overall. The hospital specialises in, orthopaedic surgery, gynaecology, general surgery, cardiology, dermatology, urology and ENT.

On arrival, Mr Fuller was met by executive director Oliver Doyle and was taken on a tour of the hospital.

During the tour, Mr Fuller saw first-hand the state-of-the-art facilities available to patients including the newly opened Minor Operating Theatre which has helped to improve patient wait times.

Mr Fuller was fascinated to hear about the increasing number of his constituents opting to access NHS treatment privately. All patients are guaranteed a choice of local NHS and independent hospitals under the NHS constitution.

While touring the facilities, Mr Fuller stopped to meet staff who shared how proud they were of the contribution they and the hospital make to the delivery of NHS care locally. The North Bedfordshire MP also met patients who had chosen to have their treatment delivered privately, citing long waits as the key reason for coming to The Manor Hospital.

The hospital has a strong reputation locally for clinical excellence with patient outcomes in the hip and knee category in addition to high levels of patient satisfaction being well above the national average.

Earlier this year, the Government published its long awaited ‘Elective Care Plan’ renewing a commitment to give NHS patients the right to choose from a ‘shortlist’ of local hospitals - ‘including providers in the independent sector paid for by the NHS.’

Mr Fuller said: “I was pleased to visit the Manor Hospital in Biddenham and take a look at the work that they are doing to maximise the utility of their site. Hospitals like The Manor add crucial capacity to meet the health needs of my constituency and much of Bedford borough. I would like to thank the staff for their hard work and dedication and look forward to visiting again once the renovations and new facilities have been installed.”

Mr Doyle said: “It was a pleasure to welcome Mr Fuller to The Manor Hospital on Thursday and share with him personally the work we are doing to improve access to care and champion the patient’s right to choose. We remain committed to working collaboratively with NHS commissioners to slash waiting times and to provide patients with the treatment they need at a time and place convenient to them.”