YOU’RE OFF YOUR TROLLEY
Hunt refuses to apologise for NHS inability to cope with worst winter ever as cuts bite Record 1,043 patients spent 12 hours in casualty corridors waiting to be admitted
A RECORD 1,043 A&E patients endured 12-hour waits on trolleys last month – but Jeremy Hunt refuses to apologise for the crisis.
The Health Secretary arrogantly told staff they “knew what they were signing up” for as the NHS suffers its worst winter ever amid Tory cuts.
Labour’s Justin Madders said: “This shows how entirely out of touch he is.”
DOCTORS and nurses struggling to cope in stretched A&Es have begged Jeremy Hunt for more cash to solve the crisis that is leaving patients waiting an age in hospital corridors.
But rather than calm their fears by offering a solution as the NHS goes through its worst ever winter, the Health Secretary warned them things could get even more grave.
The number of casualty patients waiting more than 12 hours to be admitted reached a record level of 1,043 last month, data shows – double that of the December figure. And those waiting more than four hours to even be seen also reached a new high of 81,003.
When asked if he could reassure staff things would not be worse next winter, Mr Hunt replied: “You can’t make promises like that.”
And he refused to apologise or even thank workers driven to despair by the crisis his savage NHS cuts have caused – arrogantly telling them “they knew what they were signing up for”.
His remarks sparked fury. Royal College of Nursing general secretary Janet Davies said: “Distressing scenes of frail elderly people in corridors on trolleys have become an all too familiar sight. Nursing staff do not want to provide this kind of undignified care and it is pushing people to quit the NHS. We need proper investment.” Shadow Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth added: “Today’s statistics expose the hollow nature of the Prime Minister’s claim her government sufficiently prepared for winter.” Shadow Health Minister Justin Madders said: “This shows how entirely out of touch with the reality of the NHS winter crisis Jeremy Hunt is. “Our hardworking NHS staff provide the best possible care in the face of unprecedented pressures and are all that stand between the current crisis and total collapse.”
Mr Hunt admitted this winter was the worst for the NHS on record. But despite evidence to the contrary, including the cancellation of 55,000 routine operations, he insisted “we prepared more comprehensively than ever”.
Asked on ITV News if he would apologise to staff, he replied: “When they signed up to go into medicine, they knew there would be pressurised moments. I apologise to patients when we haven’t delivered the care we should.”
NHS England abandoned its target of seeing 95% of A&E patients within four hours until next April because cuts have made it impossible to keep.
■ Hip fracture patients are waiting up to three months for home rehab, leading to depression and loss of mobility, the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy said.
Nursing staff do not want to provide this undignified care, it pushes people to quit JANET DAVIES ROYAL COLLEGE OF NURSING CHIEF ON CRISIS