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Hospitals struggle to cope with the pressures of the winter 'quad-demic' in Britain

December, 27, 2024-04:57

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Hospitals struggle to cope with the pressures of the winter 'quad-demic' in Britain 

The Most Challenging A&E Departments in Britain - where individuals endure waits of up to 12 hours to consult a medical professional, as hospitals struggle to cope with the pressures of the winter 'quad-medic'.
NHS patients in certain regions of the UK are experiencing wait times of at least 12 hours in accident and emergency departments before receiving attention from a healthcare professional, according to official statistics. At The Shrews bury and Tel-ford Hospital NHS Trust, approximately 10% of individuals who visited A&E last month faced waits of 12 hours or more. At University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, the figure reached 1,853 patients, which represents about 5% of all patients treated in November.

 Dr. Ian Higginson from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) expressed concerns yesterday about the dire circumstances facing patients in need of NHS treatment. He noted that patients are often left waiting in corridors due to a lack of available beds, with ambulances lined up outside, which poses an increased risk to the health of the staff.

Dr. Higginson remarked to Sky News: "Typically, we would anticipate a slight decrease in patient numbers just before Christmas. Unfortunately, the outlook appears quite challenging for both our patients and our staff. Senior medical professionals have issued urgent alerts regarding the overwhelming number of patients in hospitals, which are reportedly 'at capacity' as the healthcare system contends with a 'quad-demic' of winter illnesses, including influenza. The situation has been described as critical, with insufficient beds available for emergency admissions. Additionally, there is a notable shortage of staff to manage the existing beds, leaving no margin for additional patients.

A recent analysis by Mailonline of NHS statistics has identified the Accident & Emergency (A&E) departments in England that are experiencing the longest wait times. Among the locations highlighted are Shrewsbury and Birmingham, along with the University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, which reported significant instances of 12-hour waits—approximately one in every 25 patients faced such delays. Shrewsbury and Telford exhibited the poorest performance nationally for four-hour waits, with 49 percent of patients not being seen within this timeframe.

Other trusts that managed to avoid 12-hour waits included Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust, Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. In total, only 20 NHS trusts with major A&E departments met the target of treating 76 percent of all A&E patients within four hours, representing about one-sixth of the total.

NHS officials had previously cautioned that the data from last month, which marked the busiest November on record, highlighted the immense pressure the health service is currently under due to the challenges posed by the so-called 'quad-demic.'At that time, Professor Sir Stephen Powis, the NHS's national medical director, remarked, "The surge of flu cases and other seasonal viruses affecting hospitals is extremely concerning for both patients and the NHS—the statistics are exacerbating our 'quad-demic' concerns."