Almost 700,000 people waited more than 12 hours in A&E in the first seven months of 2022, according to leaked NHS figures. “Hidden” monthly trolley waits, not published in national figures, have more than doubled this year compared to 2019. Dr Catherine Henderson, president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, warned that data showed trolley waits were “worse than ever” and said it was “scandalous” that the actual figures were not being published despite promises. Dr Henderson warned that worsening A&E waiting times are the result of “decades of underfunding” and “warnings that are not there” about staffing and social care. In a message to staff in Nottinghamshire, seen by The Independent, hospital leaders said last week patients were waiting more than 40 hours for beds in A&E, while in some areas of the hospital there was only one health worker for every 14 patients, with some patients waiting at home without care. The NHS collects data on 12-hour waits, measured from the time a patient arrives at A&E. These figures, as previously revealed by The Independent, are far higher than the official figures published by the NHS each month, which only measure the waiting time after a decision has been made to admit a patient. Figures obtained by The Independent show a 144 per cent increase in monthly 12-hour waits to arrive in 2022 compared to 2019 from almost 37,000 a month to almost 100,000 and from 51,000 in 2021. Despite the increase in long waits, the average number of people attending A&E each month is broadly similar to 2019 at 1.7 million, suggesting that waits are not being driven by increased attendances at major A&Es. Statistician Dr Steve Black, who published a report on A&E death rates earlier this year, said based on waiting numbers revealed by The Independent, around 1,000 extra patients a month could be dying in emergency departments due to overcrowding. waiting. Feryal Clark, the shadow secretary for primary care and patient safety, said: “No one should be in any doubt that after 12 years of Tory mismanagement, our NHS is in crisis and lives are being put at risk. Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak are desperate to distance themselves from this damning record, but the fact is their fingerprints are all over it.’
‘HELL ON EARTH’
(Christine Boone)
In December 2021, Christine Boone from Lincolnshire told the Independent that her mother Beryl Sanders, who is blind, had to wait 10 hours for an ambulance in “agony”, three hours outside A&E and, once inside , another 20 hours in a “noisy” cabin. Ms Boone said: “She’s very sensitive to noise so it was like hell on Earth for her… the doctor called me and said we can’t find a bed for her but we have to admit her because she can’t move. It hurts so much. Then when I got there, mom was alone. There were not enough staff in the A&E department and I had to feed her a sandwich and a cup of tea. I had to alert someone to try and get a rag.” During her wait at A&E items were stolen from Ms Boone’s handbag, her daughter said. Long waits usually experienced in winter are now happening all year round, with 31-year-old Katie Stones, from Hereford, also describing a 20-hour wait for a bed after being transferred to hospital in April. He said: “Staff are doing their best for patients but are frustrated that their best is not what they would like to give… how many more patients have to die, how many more staff have to go? ”
“Decades of Underfunding”
Dr Catherine Henderson, president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, said: “We’ve known for a long time that the true number of patients staying in emergency departments for more than 12 hours was hidden, but these numbers are worse than they could be. to imagine. “These figures represent real people, real lives. lives at risk. While the pandemic would have had an impact, this is the consequence of chronic unheeded warnings about the lack of available beds, staff and social care. A decade of underfunding is behind it and the NHS is struggling to catch up.” Although NHS England collects multi-track data on how long patients waited after arriving at A&E, it has yet to publish figures. Dr Henderson said it was “outrageous” that the real figures were not published every month, adding: “We need full transparency around this problem so the government and the NHS can work to fix it. It is deeply disturbing that there seems to be a lack of concern about this.” Dr Black said: “Based on the work we published earlier this year on the relationship between excess mortality and patient waiting times, it is likely that more than 1,000 extra deaths occur each month in English A&E departments compared to number that death would have had a shorter wait.” He explained that compared to 2016, when the NHS was under less pressure, there had been a “significant increase” in mortality for people waiting more than five hours. Estimates made in the original study showed that one additional patient died for every 82 who waited six to eight hours. “The number of monthly waits also clearly shows why Covid cannot be blamed for the current problems. The current state of waiting in major A&Es is revealing and we are seeing neither honesty about the numbers nor good ideas about how to improve them,” he added. An NHS spokesman said: “Official, published NHS statistics show that hospitals are dealing with record levels of patients on emergency ambulance calls, thousands of patients in hospital with Covid-19 and ongoing discharge issues for patients who are fit enough. social arrangements. “While this study of deaths is based on data from 2016 to 2018, when more than 26 million visits were recorded, it remains as vital as ever that people come forward for care when they need care – whether through 111 online or by calling 999 in an emergency. life-threatening cases”. A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “We know that emergency care staff are under increased pressure, so we are taking steps to ensure people get the care they need, when they need it. “St John Ambulance’s £30 million contract will boost support during high-pressure periods – including providing 5,000 hours of support each month to England’s ambulance trusts and helping to reduce delays in 999 call response times.” The DHSC added that it would set aside £150 million for ambulance services to help deal with the pressures.
