Somerset NHS among UK's worst for ambulance handovers (original) (raw)
More than one in five patients were stuck in ambulances for over an hour waiting to be admitted to hospital last week - while a Somerset NHS Trust was among the worst in the UK for waiting times.
There were a total of 96,012 arrivals by ambulance at NHS hospitals in England in the week ending January 5, according to the latest government figures. That’s at both emergency and non-emergency departments. One in every five of those, a total of 19,554 patients, had to wait over an hour before being admitted.
Patients in Cornwall suffered worse than anywhere else in the country. Two thirds (66%) of arrivals by ambulance at the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust had handover delays of over an hour.
At Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust - just over the border in Wiltshire - the proportion was 62%, while at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust it was 61%.
Next on the list was Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust with 58% In all, a total of 11 trusts across the country saw at least half of patients arriving by ambulance take over an hour to be admitted.
Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust: 66%
Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust: 62%
University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust: 61%
Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust: 58%
Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust: 58%
The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust: 54%
Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust: 54%
University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust: 53%
Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust: 52%
The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust: 50%
Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust: 50%
It comes as two Somerset hospitals have declared critical incidents due to sharp rises in patients presenting with flu and other respiratory illnesses. Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton and Yeovil Hospital have joined more than a dozen hospitals across the UK which have declared critical incidents due to "extremely high demand" for their services, especially within their accident and emergency departments.
The Somerset NHS Foundation Trust (which manages both hospitals) has sought to reassure the public, issuing advice for those attending both A&E and regular outpatient appointments. A spokesman said: "Like many other hospitals in the region and across the country, we have seen a significant increase in the number of flu and respiratory illness cases.
"Colleagues and teams from across the trust have been working exceptionally hard to see and treat our patients as quickly as possible during times of huge demand. We are also working closely with our health and care partners to ensure that patients who are ready to leave hospital can be discharged, at the earliest opportunity.
"Patient safety is our top priority and colleagues from across the trust are working together to ensure that we can continue to provide urgent and emergency care for all patients, and to keep as many routine services running as possible." While the critical incident is in effect, those needing to attend A&E should try to do so alone if possible, due to "very limited" space within the waiting areas of both departments.
Those attending should expect longer waiting times, and patients may be redirected to alternative NHS services - including Somerset's urgent treatment centres (which have largely replaced its minor injuries units), your local GP, a pharmacist or the NHS 111 service. Some non-urgent, planned treatments and appointments may need to be postponed as staff from across the hospitals seek to assist their colleagues within the emergency department.
Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS National Medical Director, said: “It is clear that hospitals are under exceptional pressure at the start of this new year, with mammoth demand stemming from this ongoing cold weather snap and respiratory viruses like flu – all on the back of 2024 being the busiest year on record for A&E and ambulance teams.
“I never fail to be impressed by the remarkable job that NHS staff across a range of services in the face of current challenges, remaining compassionate, professional and doing everything they can to see patients as quickly as possible while often working in hospitals that are full to bursting. It is hard to quantify just through the data how tough it is for frontline staff at the moment – with some staff working in A&E saying that their days at work feel like some of the days we had during the height of the pandemic.
“That hard work and resilience from staff, alongside vital tools like surgical hubs and community diagnostic centres that keep planned care isolated from winter pressure, meant the waiting list fell again in November to 7.48 million, with the NHS delivering 5% more activity than the same period pre-pandemic.
“As the incredibly busy winter continues and hospitals clearly experience intense pressure, please do continue to only use 999 and A&E in life-threatening emergencies and use NHS 111 and 111 online for other conditions, as well as using your local GP and pharmacy services in the usual way.”
Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting said: “In the past 6 months, we have ended the junior doctors’ strikes so staff are on the front line not the picket line for the first winter in 3 years, and introduced the new RSV vaccine. But despite the best efforts of staff, patients are still receiving unacceptable standards of care.
“Although this winter’s campaign vaccinated more people than last winter, this strain of flu has hit hard, putting more than three times as many patients into hospital compared to this time last year.
“Annual winter pressures should not mean an annual winter crisis, which is why this government is making significant investment in the NHS, undertaking fundamental reform, and acting now to improve social care. It will take time to turn the NHS around, but the fact that waiting lists are now falling shows that change is possible.”
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