WAITING times at Bradford’s busy accident & emergency department are getting better - although they are still below Government targets.

But patients attending the unit at Bradford Royal Infirmary in the past two months have been seen, treated, admitted or discharged quicker than the national average.

In May, the Telegraph & Argus revealed about 400 people a day were seeking treatment from the emergency department with staff having to be drafted in from other wards at the busiest times and that only an average of between 80 to 85 per cent of patients were being seen and dealt with inside four hours when the Government’s target is 95 per cent and the national average is 86 per cent.

Improved July figures from Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust show an average of 88.12 per cent of the 11,808 A&E attendances that month were seen within the target time.

In June there were 832 fewer A&E patients than in July with an average of 86.26 per cent of them having to wait four hours or less.

A Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust spokesman said: “Over the last two months we have seen improved performance in A&E waiting times, despite the number of attendances going up in July.

“Attendance figures have fluctuated over the last few months, but we are pleased with the steady reduction in waiting times so that more patients are treated, admitted or discharged within four hours.”

However the spokesman said some people's attendances were still sometimes inappropriate.

The Trust has identified 28 people who habitually turn up at A&E and said it is working with other health bodies to tackle the problem and get appropriate care for them.

Figures for between February and April showed a total of 2,029 people paid two visits or more to the emergency unit at Bradford Royal Infirmary.

In that same period, 8,008 patients attended A&E once.

The spokesman said: “It remains the case that attendances are sometimes inappropriate, and this puts undue pressure on the hospital, so we would continue to remind people to think carefully before coming to A&E.

“People whose conditions are not life-threatening or an emergency should visit their local pharmacy or GP first so that our A&E department is left free to deal with the most vulnerable and sickest patients who really need our help.”

Airedale Hospital beat the waiting time target in both June and July with an average wait of 154 minutes for the 5,424 and 5,770 attendances respectively to its A&E.

Stacey Hunter, chief operating officer for Airedale NHS Foundation Trust said its Telemedicine service in care homes and work to care for patients in their homes with social care workers was helping to make a difference.

She added: “I would like to pay tribute to our teams who have worked tirelessly to achieve the standard, thus ensuring that we provide the best care possible for our patients."