No stars for NHS hospital trust

Mid-Staffordshire General Hospitals NHS Trust is one of only 10 acute trusts in England not to have received any stars in this year's NHS ratings.

The trust, which runs the Staffordshire General Hospital, was found to have "significantly underachieved" in meeting waiting list targets.

It was also criticised over financial management and its record for treating cancer patients.

Managers said the Health Commission's findings were "disappointing".

No other acute healthcare trusts in the West Midlands area received zero-star ratings, although Rugby Primary Care Trust was one of only 14 in England to be given the lowest rating.

Three stars

Among the key targets it failed to meet were giving patients access to a healthcare professional within 24 hours and access to a GP within 48 hours.

Other zero-star awards went to the mental health trusts in Wolverhampton and Worcestershire.

Health bosses in Wolverhampton were deemed to have failed to integrate mental health teams into the community, while child protection and crisis management were areas for concern in Worcestershire.

There are also several success stories in the region, with both specialist hospital trusts in Birmingham getting three stars.

The award, which is the highest possible rating, went to Birmingham Children's Hospital NHS Trust and Birmingham Women's Health Care NHS Trust.

Shropshire success

Hereford and Worcester Ambulance Service NHS Trust also received three stars, as did Herefordshire Primary Care Trust.

Warwickshire Ambulance Service was given the top rating, while South Warwickshire General Hospitals Trust got three stars for its mental healthcare.

But the county found to have the best services across the board was Shropshire.

There were three stars for the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the Royal Shrewsbury and the Princess Royal in Telford.

And the county's mental health services also received the top rating, as did Staffordshire Ambulance NHS Trust, which is responsible for patients in both counties.