Criticism as Manx Care publishes 'stark' annual report

But health body 'proud' of 'significant improvements' despite 'challenges'

Manx Care says its latest annual report shows 'measurable improvements and significant enhancements' to the patient experience.

However, there's been criticism of the health body as a number of key targets have been missed over the 2024/25 period.

Among its achievements between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025, Manx Care says access to services and patient experience have seen significant enhancements. 

It also cites the opening of Summerhill View Care Home, and the Bluebell Suite for families experiencing pregnancy loss, as two examples of how it is responding to the needs of the community. 

Mental health services have also made strides, it says, with reduced waiting times for counselling and a 25 percent reduction in the CAMHS waiting list. 

Key Performance Indicators

• The percentage of patients waiting six weeks or more for a diagnostic test, for example, should - as per Manx Care's target - be less than one percent. That figure stood at 58 percent.

Manx Care says that's a small improvement (two percent) on performance compared to 2023/24, but demand continued to exceed diagnostic capacity. 

It assures work is taking place to reduce waiting times in these areas 'through a combination of waiting list initiatives, worklist efficiency adjustments, more timely identification of potential breaches of the standard and waiting list validation'.

• The percentage of patients receiving a diagnosis or ruling out of cancer within 28 days of referral is below the target of 75 percent at 63 percent.

The annual report says: 'During this year challenges with our clinical staffing levels have been a contributing factor to achieving the target. The absence of a full-time Breast Radiologist between June and September resulted in significant delays to our one-stop clinic appointments for Breast patients, in addition to wider limited locum cover available for clinical staff scheduled leave and sickness. 

'These combined staffing issues pan-service adversely impacted our performance. Manx Care continues to internally re-align and transform its services to address and best achieve the target.'

• The mean ambulance response times for Category 1 callouts stood at nine minutes, two minutes above the seven minute target.

Manx Care says: 'Several factors make the achievement of the Category 1 response standards very challenging, such as Island geography, a lack of available resources at the time of call and small case numbers leading to volatility in reporting.

Whilst the target for Category 1 response times might have been missed, the Category 2 Mean Response Time (indicating a serious condition, such as stroke or chest pain) stands at 15 minutes, within the target of under-18 minutes.

Reaction

The leaders of Manx Care and the Department of Health and Social Care have acknowledged the 'progress made and significant challenges faced' during the year. 

Chair of Manx Care, Dr. Wendy Reid, says: “I am proud to share this important report, where we recognise colleagues across the organisation as we acknowledge the measurable improvements, external accreditations, and significant enhancements made to the patient and service user experience. As always, health and social care comes with its significant challenges, including rising demand that outpaces capacity, however we remain focused on delivering community-first, person-centred solutions.”

Manx Care CEO Teresa Cope, meanwhile, says: “This year we have continued to update and streamline our pathways and processes to comply with the Department of Health and Social Care’s Mandate to Manx Care. We’re acutely aware of the pressures on our colleagues, and are working with this awareness, and our patients and service users, at the heart of all we do.”

Health Minister Claire Christian says: “Teams across Manx Care work incredibly hard every day to deliver improved patient and service user outcomes, and that is evident in a lot of the data in this report. The strategic priority of a home-first approach is at the forefront of their decision-making, ensuring the right care is delivered in the right place, at the right time.”

Professor Tim O’Neill, Interim Chief Officer for DHSC, says: “It is fantastic to see just how dedicated our colleagues are at Manx Care – there are so many things to be proud of in this report. Evidently, it is a very challenging time, both financially and in terms of demand outweighing capacity in some areas, but the hard work, commitment and dedication of our amazing Manx Care staff continues to shine through in this report."  

Meanwhile, the reaction online has been less positive.

In a post on social media, Onchan MHK Julie Edge has urged the Manx Care Board to consider resigning and make way for what she calls "leadership that can deliver a service fit for our Island".

Ms Edge says: "The Board has failed in its duty to provide safe, timely, and sustainable care.