'Urgent action' order for NHS trust

An NHS trust has been ordered by regulators to take "urgent action" to improve its finances.

Monitor said that Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust must turn around its finances to ensure that patient services remain sustainable.

The foundation trust regulator said the trust was "in significant breach of its terms of authorisation" for failing to address monetary problems quickly and efficiently.

Monitor also criticised the trust for failing to successfully implement a new electronic patient records system which led to problems booking patient appointments and loss of income.

It also raised concerns over the trust's governance.

Stephen Hay, managing director for provider regulation at Monitor, said: "The trust has had financial problems for a while and we are concerned that their failure to address them may be due to the lack of adequate strength and capacity within the management team.

"We welcome the appointment of an interim chief executive last week and hope that the trust can quickly strengthen the way it governs its finances so that services to patients remain robust and sustainable."

Peter Lee, chairman at the trust, said: "We fully acknowledge Monitor's decision to place the trust in significant breach but I can assure our patients, staff and the people of Rotherham that we have already begun to implement the changes that are required.

"We are committed to ensuring the future sustainability of the trust and we remain focused on continuing to deliver high quality services and safe care for our community. We are determined to secure a long-term healthy future for this trust for the people who need, want and deserve a high quality of health care in Rotherham and further afield."