A TWO star rating for Hereford Hospitals has delighted staff.

"It is a tribute to the hard work they put in,'' said Jeremy Millar, chief executive of Hereford Hospitals Trust.

The Trust was one of 100 in the country to be given a two star rating in the Department of Health's recent performance tables for the current year.

Thirty five trusts managed the top three stars but 25 others were given only one and 16 were rated at zero.

The trusts were being judged on how well they managed their NHS services over six months.

Mr Millar confirmed the Hereford trust was delighted with the two star award. It indicated the high level of care and commitment displayed by staff.

All trusts were assessed over four areas and a scoring system used in each category showing if they achieved, under achieved or significantly under-achieved.

In almost all areas Hereford achieved, and in one, involving clinical focus relating to clinical negligence, emergency re-admissions and the number of deaths in hospital it scored 33 per cent higher than the average in England.

It fell down slightly on staff focus, being judged to have too many vacancies among professional clinical staff.

Mr Millar said this would be resolved to acceptable levels with the opening of the new hospital.

There had been a high level of bank and agency nurses until the full requirements of the new hospital were known. An increase in consultant staff had already taken place.

In dealing satisfactorily with written complaints within four weeks the trust achieved only 60 per cent against a target of 100 per cent.

The trust received round 140 complaints from 20,000 patient contacts a year. They were becoming increasingly complex and needed thorough investigation before they could be concluded.

Mr Millar said there were occasions when they could not be resolved within four weeks but he pointed out that in his time no complaint had had to go to an independent review, or to the Ombudsman.

Dr Jan Steven's the trust's director of nursing and operations believed the national comparators to be an ideal way of identifying weaknesses.

"For us there were few. Importantly we are learning from them and with very minimal change we can ensure that our service to the population of Herefordshire is among the best in the country,'' she said.