‘Keep pressure off A&E’ plea as November visits up
MORE people visited Welsh accident and emergency departments last month than in any other November since the statistics were first published, it has been revealed.
Latest Welsh NHS figures revealed that there were 82,565 A&E attendances in November, an increase of just over 2,660 compared to November 2016.
Eight out of 10 patients (82.9%) spent four hours or fewer in an emergency unit in November before being admitted, transferred or discharged, and 96.2% spent fewer than 12 hours.
It means 3,143 patients were in a Welsh emergency unit for more than 12 hours before being moved elsewhere.
The Welsh Government wants 95% of patients to spend fewer than four hours in an emergency unit – and they don’t want anyone there for 12 hours or more.
Over the year to November 2017, the number of visits was up 5% on improvement for urgent treatments in this latest data should not disguise the fact that both urgent and non-urgent treatment targets were once again missed. This has been the case with worrying consistency over the course of the last few years.
“While no-one can doubt the fantastic efforts of NHS staff as they try to meet an increasing demand for cancer care, at a time when budgets across our health services are increasingly tight, any delay in treatment can be heart-breaking for those involved.
“Across Wales we need to ensure that we create a sustainable cancer workforce, so that all cancer treatments can begin on time, for all cancer patients in Wales.
“The wait for cancer treatment to begin can be hard at any time of year, but it is terrible that so many people could have their Christmas overshadowed by the anxiety of not knowing when their treatment will begin.”