NHS heading for "corridor care disaster" as winter set to put health service under "record" pressures

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Long A&E waits in England have soared, new figures show, as NHS leaders warned that the service is heading for winter under “more pressure than ever before”.

Performance against key targets fell short in emergency departments and ambulance response times, according to figures from the health service in England.

Experts warned that a “corridor care disaster” is unfolding as the figures revealed the number of people waiting more than 12 hours in A&E departments in England from a decision to admit to actually being admitted stood at 49,592 in October - up from 38,880 in September.

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This is the third highest monthly figure since comparable records began in 2010. The number waiting at least four hours from the decision to admit to admission also rose, standing at 148,789 in October, up from 130,632 in September.

A&E waiting times and ambulance reponse times have been steadily increasing in recent months.A&E waiting times and ambulance reponse times have been steadily increasing in recent months.
A&E waiting times and ambulance reponse times have been steadily increasing in recent months.

Some 73 per cent of patients in England were seen within four hours in A&Es last month, down from 74.2 per cent in September.

Patricia Marquis, executive director for the Royal College of Nursing in England, said: “Today’s figures show a corridor care disaster is unfolding in front of our eyes - near record numbers are languishing on trolleys after being deemed sick enough to be admitted, whilst thousands cannot be discharged due to a lack of community care.

“The cold weather hasn’t properly arrived, and this situation threatens only to worsen.”

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Meanwhile, the average response time in October for ambulances in England dealing with the most urgent incidents, defined as calls from people with life-threatening illnesses or injuries, was eight minutes and 38 seconds. This is up from eight minutes and 25 seconds in September and is above the target standard response time of seven minutes.

Ambulances took an average of 42 minutes and 15 seconds last month to respond to emergency calls such as heart attacks, strokes and sepsis. The target is 18 minutes.

NHS England said there were 2.36m A&E attendances last month, six per cent more than October 2023.

Concerns have also been raised that the target to eliminate all waits of more than 65 weeks for pre-planned care has been missed.

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Patricia Marquis, executive director for the Royal College of Nursing, says the situation in hospitals “threatens only to worsen”.Patricia Marquis, executive director for the Royal College of Nursing, says the situation in hospitals “threatens only to worsen”.
Patricia Marquis, executive director for the Royal College of Nursing, says the situation in hospitals “threatens only to worsen”.

Meanwhile, ambulance teams responded to more incidents than any other October with more than three quarters of a million (759,019) incidents including 84,108 of the most serious Category One incidents.

Rory Deighton, acute director at the NHS Confederation, which represents NHS organisations, said: “These figures show that the NHS continues to be facing record demand, with A&Es and ambulances having their busiest October ever.

“This comes after the busiest summer and September on record, so it is very concerning that the health service is running so hot ahead of what is expected to be another very difficult winter. With record numbers of patients who often have multiple or more complex conditions there is a real risk services could become overwhelmed and fall into crisis.”

Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, said: “The NHS is going into winter under more pressure and busier than ever before, with another record month for A&E and ambulance services before we even start to see a further spike of pressure caused by colder weather and the spread of winter viruses.

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“While we saw 10 per cent more A&E patients within four hours than last year despite the record demand, it is vital that people help us out by only going to A&E or calling 999 in a life-threatening emergency, using 111 for other conditions, and getting their Covid, flu and RSV vaccinations if eligible.”

It comes after Health Secretary Wes Streeting said failing hospitals will be named and shamed in league tables and NHS managers sacked if they cannot improve patient care and take control of finances.

Commenting on the latest performance figures, Siva Anandaciva, chief analyst at The King’s Fund, said: “The figures show that NHS performance issues are endemic across the country and deep-rooted, with many key targets having been missed for years.

“Only 73 per cent of people are seen within four hours in A&E compared to the NHS standard of 95 per cent - a target not met in over eight years - and a target missed by every hospital trust running a major A&E department in England.

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“People are waiting 42 minutes for an ambulance for urgent cases such as strokes when the target is 18 minutes – a target not met in over four years.

“Ministers rightly want to improve the poor standard of care many patients receive. Transparency is a good aim, but league tables alone will not lead to better and faster care this winter and could result in the unintended consequence of health leaders becoming too focused on reporting upwards to national bodies, instead of outwards to what their local communities need.”

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