More than half A&ES failing, says watchdog

More than half of A&ES are now failing because patients who should be treated at home or in clinics are flooding through emergency departments’ “ever-open doors”, inspectors have warned. The Care Quality Commission said breakdowns in provision for dementia and mental health patients were fuelling the deterioration of standards. The watchdog, in its annual state of care report, also blamed the increasing difficulty in securing GP appointments.

MORE than half of A&ES are now failing because patients who should be treated at home or in clinics are flooding through emergency department’s “ever-open doors”, inspectors have warned.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) said breakdowns in provision for dementia and mental health patients are fuelling the deterioration of standards.

The watchdog also blamed the increasing difficulty in securing GP appointments. The body’s annual state of care report found 44 per cent of A&ES required improvement in 2018-19, compared with 41 per cent last year, while 8 per cent were branded inadequate, up from 7 per cent.

Bosses described the situation across the NHS and social care as a “perfect storm” in the run-up to what is forecast to be a tough winter for hospitals.

The CQC also said it still has “serious concerns” about patient safety in the health service, despite small improvements since last year.

Some 36 per cent of NHS hospitals are currently ranked as requiring improvement on safety, while 3 per cent are inadequate.

The CQC also warned of a “serious deterioration” in the quality of inpatient services for people with mental health problems, learning disabilities and autism.

Ten per cent of inpatient services for people with learning disabilities and/ or autism were rated as inadequate, compared with just 1 per cent the year before.

Meanwhile, 7 per cent of child and adolescent mental health inpatient services were rated inadequate, a rise from 3 per cent the year before. The shortcomings are heaping pressure on already stretched emergency department staff, the watchdog said.

Kate Terroni, the CQC’S chief inspector of adult social care, said: “This year’s state of care report shows that people are struggling to get the right care at the right time in the right place.

“For people with dementia, this can mean that they end up in emergency departments because they can’t get the help they need out of hospital.”

The report also revealed that over the last five years, the 18-week waiting list for planned hospital treatment has gone up from around three million people to 4.4million people. It follows recent research by the charity Age UK which found that 1.4 million people, most of them elderly, are not having their care and support needs met.

A spokesman for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “We are supporting our most vulnerable by transforming mental health services with a record spend of £12.1billion this year.”