ACCIDENT and emergency waiting times at the Royal Berkshire Hospital continue to decline.

In the first week of January 80.7 per cent of patients admitted in need of urgent treatment were waiting less than four hours to be seen, which is 14.3 per cent below the national target.

Regulator Monitor announced in November it would be investigating the London Road hospital for poor record keeping, which is the second time it has intervened in the last 18 months.

In August 2013 the regulator investigated after the hospital repeatedly breached its A&E four hour waiting time target, but that ended in the following March.

Hospital spokesman Joe Wise said: “Our message to the public is to consider whether they really need the services of Emergency Department consultants, doctors and nurses - we would ask everyone to use A&E only if they or a family member is seriously unwell or has sustained a serious injury.

“For many ailments there are other more services which can be used - including calling 111, their GP, using the walk in centre or minor injuries units, pharmacies and self help for cold and flu.

“This will allow our Emergency team to concentrate on the patients who are most seriously unwell.”

In comparison, nearby trusts such as the Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital and the John Radcliffe Hospital, in Oxfordshire, also failed to hit the 95 per cent national target, achieving 82.8 per cent and 73.9 per cent respectively.