A MAJOR hospital has launched an investigation into allegations of “irregularities” in its A&E waiting time figures.

Wirral University Hospital Trust has confirmed it is carrying out an “urgent” inquiry and one member of staff has been suspended at Arrowe Park hospital.

The Daily Post understands that member of staff is Maria Jeffery, a manager on the A&E ward.

It is believed the alleged irregularities on the recording of waiting times centre around the four-hour, NHS targets in A&E.

They demand that, after four hours, a patient waiting for treatment should at least be transferred to a trolley, and in the event of an eight-hour wait to a bed.

Sources say the pressure for space on wards at the massive hospital, combined with financial penalties for trusts that miss these targets, have seen intolerable pressures placed on hard-working managers.

One source said: “She is a good person, she’s well-liked, good with patients and she looks after staff.

“It’s a hard place to work and the pressure comes down to hit these targets, so I think there is support for her in the hospital.

“The trust gets penalised if they miss these targets, but it’s an issue of beds.

“If the wards are full, that’s why they have to go on the trolleys. The hospital’s floor space is the same but there’s a move to single rooms. It’s all taking up bed space, but the pressures to hit targets is felt further down.

“If you ask the staff it’s a nightmare.”

Ms Jeffery’s suspension by the Trust is “without prejudice”, meaning there is no suggestion of wrongdoing, but she will not work at the hospital for the duration of the investigation.