CANCER patients at Barnsley Hospital said their overall care experience was better than the average experience across England.

Figures from NHS England’s cancer patient experience survey showed the average rating of the 115 people who received cancer care at Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and provided an overall score was nine out of ten.

The figures also showed 29 out of 39 patients said they had confidence and trust in every member of the team looking after them at Barnsley Hospital.

Meanwhile, nationally 22 per cent of people said they received the right support from the GP during their cancer care.

At Barnsley Hospital, 13 out of 77 patients said they received sufficient support from the GP.

An NHS spokesperson said: “Patient experience of care is incredibly important to the NHS and this survey is vital in highlighting where we can improve services.

“It’s encouraging to see that, on average, patients rated their overall experience of care 8.89 out of ten compared to 8.88 last year - and that more than three quarters of those surveyed said they received the right amount of support from hospital staff.

“But we recognise that more work is needed to tackle the current challenges faced by cancer services and ensure all patients receive high-quality and timely care.”

It comes just months after hospital staff who were surveyed helped propel the facility to being crowned the best acute trust in the country.

Sheena McDonnell, Barnsley Hospital’s chair, said more than 2,200 staff members took part.

She added that, while the survey results were welcome, the trust was not ‘complacent’ and knew there were areas where it needed to improve.

“We continue to work to improve this, listening carefully to the experiences.

“We also know some areas of the trust don’t report the same levels of satisfaction as the majority of others, and this year we will provide additional support to those areas.”