 New figures have revealed that almost 400,000 spent 24 hours or more in an emergency department in England last year. According to The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) the very long waits are a 'matter of national shame.' Data uncovered by the college shows that 399,908 people waited 24 hours or more in an emergency department in England in 2022/23. It also warned that there could be a similar situation this year. It comes just a few weeks after the number of people in England waiting to start routine hospital treatment rose to a new record high. An estimated 7.68 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of July, up from 7.57 million in June, NHS England said two weeks ago. Have you experienced long wait times in A&E? Please get in touch with your experiences and email liam.coleman@metro.co.uk The wait times has shown just how stretched the NHS is(Picture: PA) It has been described as a 'national shame' that people have had to wait so long in A&E(Picture: Alamy Stock Photo) Dr Adrian Boyle, president of the College, has warned that patients are coming to avoidable harm as a result of long waits. He said: 'We know that long stays in emergency departments are harmful. 'There is good scientific data that shows that once people spend more than about six hours, and they need to be admitted into hospital, actually their mortality starts to get worse. 'I think it should be a matter of national shame that we have the these very long waits for admitted patients.' He added: 'We must not normalise very abnormal situation. 24 hours in A&E is not just a documentary, it's a way of life for lots of people, and it's a way of life for far too many people. 'This is a fixable problem but requires political will and commitment to sort this out.' Dr Boyle said that the College wants 'an emergency care system that people feel they can be l){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
New figures have revealed that almost 400,000 spent 24 hours or more in an emergency department in England last year.
According to The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) the very long waits are a ‘matter of national shame.’
Data uncovered by the college shows that 399,908 people waited 24 hours or more in an emergency department in England in 2022/23. It also warned that there could be a similar situation this year.
It comes just a few weeks after the number of people in England waiting to start routine hospital treatment rose to a new record high.