Greater Manchester hospital named 'best in the country' in one treatment area

The hospital has been named the best in the country for accuracy in the crucial test, and is rated as one of the fastest in getting the results

A Greater Manchester hospital is now the 'best in the country' for its accuracy in one life-saving test.

The Royal Bolton Hospital has been named number one in the country for accuracy in breast screening tests.

The hospital has also been named one of the fastest in the country for getting test results following breast screenings.

The results 'recognise that Bolton NHS Foundation Trust is able to provide robust guarantees in terms of investigations for patients, improving the quality of care and ensuring patients receive correct treatment at the earliest opportunity', said the hospital.

The hospital's breast screening service was subject to an annual breast screening pathology audit by the NHS' biopsy quality assurance system. The system is used to assess the accuracy and quality of breast biopsy performed as part of the national breast screening programme, and make sure they are being done to a high standard.

Performance figures for hospitals across the nation are compared, with the Royal Bolton Hospital achieving the best standard in the country for its work to check the accuracy of breast screening tests. The hospital is also seventh fastest in the country for its results turnaround times.

The hospital says that good results in the audit require 'excellent working across a number of teams and specialties, from good radiology assessments and biopsies to good pathology interpretation'.

The audit also showed that the hospital has achieved the results within budget, and without any help from locum or outsourced staff.

Dr Mark Pearson, who has been a consultant at the trust, which runs the Royal Bolton hospital, for more than 30 years, said: “I am particularly proud to be part of a team that is able to offer those guarantees to the patients who are screened positive in the programme.

"The results are exactly where I would want them to be and are certainly amongst the best results that I have seen throughout my career.

“I want to use this opportunity to shout out about how good a service this is and not only do we produce quality like this, we are seventh fastest in the country in terms of getting the results turned over.

"Which means that we are one of the only services in Greater Manchester that is reaching the key performance indicator of turn around.

“I am extremely keen to share our excellent performance as a service with the community of Bolton.”