Chief executive of specialist trust resigns

The trust declined to give any reason for Wendy Farrington Chadd’s resignation.

Monitor has been investigating the trust since June over long waiting times for its referral to treatment patients. The investigation is ongoing.

An independent review by consultancy Deloitte, commissioned by the trust and published in August, found that hundreds of patients had been excluded from the trust’s waiting list on a monthly basis for 14 months.

This had the effect of boosting the trust’s average monthly performance against the 92 per cent incomplete target from 85 per cent, which included the excluded patients, to slightly over 92 per cent.

The trust’s finance director, John Grinnell, will become acting chief executive.

Ms Farrington Chadd said: “I would like to place on record my appreciation for the support and hard work of the staff during my time at The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital Foundation Trust.

“I wish the hospital, its staff and patients all the very best for the future.”

Trust chair Frank Collins said: “I would like to take this opportunity to recognise Wendy for the very significant contribution she has made to the trust since her arrival in March 2007. We wish her well for the future.”

He added: “We will soon begin the process of making a permanent appointment.”