A senior medic would drive their children to hospital out of the county in an emergency rather than risk treatment at the Cumberland Infirmary.

The stark revelation highlights the depth of the concerns of staff at the Cumberland Infirmary, three years after a damning report into widespread failings.

Today the  News& Star reveals the true scale of the crisis continuing at the trust which runs the hospital.

One insider, who cannot be identified for fear of recriminations, told the  News & Star : “I am concerned enough not to go to the Cumberland Infirmary or take my children – I would drive to Newcastle or Dumfries. I’m serious.”

Asked whether that meant they would drive out of Cumbria in an emergency they replied simply: “Yes”.

An investigation by the  News & Star has uncovered serious safety issues in theatre, long waits for surgery and cancer treatment and a shortage of nurses leaving wards struggling for cover.

Despite this, NHS bosses have this week requested that the trust in charge is brought out of special measures – claiming improvements have been made. Hospital insiders fear that enough has been done to address CQC concerns that it might be seen as improving, even though staff have serious concerns over daily failures.

One told the News & Star:  “This seems possible – even in the current climate. They are not interested in safety or incident reporting. The reasons for going into special measures have been addressed. I wish I could leave.”

It is nearly three years since a damning CQC inspection uncovered serious failings – including inadequate staffing levels, weak leadership, dirty wards and poor infection control – eventually leading to the Carlisle and Whitehaven hospitals being plunged into special measures.

Yet despite changes in management and Government intervention, the trust remains in crisis – with a leaked document revealing six ‘never events’ since July, five of which happened in theatres.

A nursing insider told the  News & Star : “The bed crisis seems to be on a daily basis.

“Staff are under pressure from all angles to get patients home when realistically they are not ready because they are desperate for beds. A&E is full to bursting, ambulances are waiting with patients in the car park. Routine operations are being cancelled as staff are moved to wards rather than day surgery. Confidence in the hospital coping is being lost as it feels more like crisis management on a daily basis.”

A CQC spokesman would not be drawn on how long the hospitals were likely to remain in special measures, saying only: “We are continuing to monitor the situation at the trust.”

The Success Regime – the body set up by the Government to rescue Cumbria’s troubled NHS – has responded to concerns set out by national watchdog the Care Quality Commission. It claims that actions are being taken to stabilise “fragile acute services” and improve performance against waiting and A&E targets.

Sir Neil McKay, chairman of the Success Regime, said: “I believe this document gives the CQC the reassurance it needs to take North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust out of special measures.”

An investigation by the  News & Star paints a very different picture.

Figures reveal The Cumberland Infirmary and West Cumberland Hospital continue to miss A&E targets, with some patients waiting longer than 12 hours. This is having a knock-on effect on ambulance cover, with crews regularly waiting more than 30 minutes – and often an hour – to hand over patients.

Hospitals chief executive Stephen Eames said: “Our performance as a trust is continuously improving, and has improved dramatically in recent months. For A&E waiting times we are 8% above our agreed trajectory, which is extremely good news. 

"We have escalation processes for any staff concerns, and we take any concerns that are reported directly very seriously.”