'Huge pressure' at hospital testing department

Staffing challenges, uneven workload and carrying out thousands of tests a year are part of "business as usual" in the histopathology department at a Surrey hospital, a consultant healthcare scientist has said.

James Woodland said the department at Royal Surrey County Hospital dealt with about 30,000 samples a year and tens of thousands more as part of a pathology network across Surrey and Berkshire.

Woodland, previously a laboratory manager, told BBC Radio Surrey that the work carried out was "definitely behind the scenes".

He said it was increasing year on year, with an ageing population and medical advancements increasing the workload.

Patient samples are screened and tested in the department, including for conditions like cancer.

"It's a huge pressure," he said.

"Our workload is very uneven. Obviously, people can't tell you when they're going to get ill.

"As across the whole NHS, that unevenness means that we have severe peaks and troughs in the workflow. We also have some recruitment issues."

But he said that seasonal pressures did not hit the department directly.

"Our role is very much about the business as usual," Woodland said.

"I think I'm right to say that this trust hasn't cancelled any cancer surgery during the winter pressures."

He said that the department was there to "make sure the wider waiting lists and flow of patients" were not impacted by winter pressures on the wider NHS.

But due to scientific advancements in both treatment and testing, the workload continued to increase, he said.

"If you had 10 specimens 10 years ago, the amount of work you would do on those has probably doubled on the same 10 specimens in those 10 years," he added.

Follow BBC Surrey on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to southeasttoday@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.