Patients waiting 12 hours for A&E treatment at record high
THE number of patients experiencing 12-hour “trolley waits” in emergency departments has increased by 50 per cent in a month to more than 10,000, official figures show.
Concerns are mounting that hospital beds are being taken up by patients who could be discharged, as separate data identified about 10,500 beds were being blocked a day.
Last month, 10,646 people waited more than 12 hours in England’s hospitals from a decision to admit them to actually being admitted for treatment, up from 7,059 the previous month and the highest since records began in 2010.
There were 381,495 admissions via A&E last month, and 120,749 of them – a third – waited more than four hours from the decision to admit to being admitted, NHS data showed.
On average, there were 10,500 patients a day last week who no longer needed to be in hospital, NHS England said. Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, said: “It is striking how many NHS trusts are now saying they are diverting staff and financial resources to support social care.”
A survey by the British Medical Association yesterday showed that three quarters of doctors reported discharging patients into social care had become “more difficult” than last year.
Dr Simon Walsh, deputy chairman of the BMA consultants committee, said: “It’s clear that hospitals simply do not have the capacity to cope, with problems discharging patients and moving people to wards all having a knock-on
‘It is striking how many NHS trusts are diverting staff and resources to support social care’
effect that ultimately leads to these delays in emergency departments and indeed ambulance services.”
Prof Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director for England, said: “We are working with partners in social care to get as many patients who are fit to do so home for Christmas, which is right for them as well as freeing up beds.”
NHS England said last month was the second busiest November on record for A&E, with more than two million patients seen at emergency departments and urgent treatment centres.