Emergency Doctors Concerned Over Patient Safety and Care This Winter

An ambulance outside a Accident and Emergency Department in the United Kingdom on Jan. 6, 2022. Dominic Lipinski/PA

A “shocking” number of A&E clinicians have reported concerns over patient safety this winter, as departments grapple with severe overcrowding and declining standards of care.

A survey of health care workers, responsible for patient safety in A&E departments, has revealed that 94 percent of clinicians think that patients are being put at risk.

The findings, published by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) on Monday showed that only one in 10 respondents across 83 hospitals said they felt better prepared this winter than they did last year.

The results also revealed that 87 percent said they were not confident their department will cope this winter and 83 percent had patients being cared for in corridors.

It comes amid a substantial increase in the number of patients waiting for longer than 12 hours after being admitted to A&E over the past two years. The figure stood at 49,592 in October, up from 38,880 in September, according to the Royal College of Nursing.

Overall, October accounted for 567,446 emergency admissions, a 3.8 percent increase when compared to the same month last year.

Commenting on the results of the survey, RCEM President Dr. Adrian Boyle said: “This is a stark warning from those on the front line. Clinicians are worried and patients are unsafe. Winter is coming, and it looks like we are facing a massive crisis in every part of the UK. We cannot just ignore winter and our patients.”

He also said that so-called “corridor care” is “degrading and dehumanising” for vulnerable patients.

“This euphemism, in reality, means people being stranded for hours on trolleys or chairs,” Boyle said.

RCEM said that shortage of beds and resources leads to a higher associated risk of patients dying. Last year, it reported almost 300 deaths a week associated with long A&E waits.

Following last year’s winter health service crisis, the government implemented a recovery plan for emergency care services in January 2023. The scheme aimed to improve waiting times, but the NHS still experienced high hospital bed occupancy and a rise in patient admissions.

In February, only 56.5 percent of patients met the NHS four-hour waiting time target. This was down by 1.5 percent compared to when the plan was announced.

“We speak of percentages and numbers but let’s remember we are talking about people, and a workforce running on fumes trying to do their best. All this with the backdrop of a government telling them they need to work harder and more effectively, but which has not invested any more resources for these winter months,” said Boyle.

Government Support

Boyle noted that Labour’s October Budget failed to address and ease the pressures in A&Es this winter.

“[There has been] no increase in bed numbers, no added support for social care which could keep people out of hospital in the first place or allow them to leave when they are well enough,” he said.

The government has pledged to turn the NHS around.

The October Budget set aside funding to deliver 40,000 elective appointments per week. The cash influx is meant to help reduce waiting times and includes £1.5 billion for new surgical hubs and scanners, alongside £70 million for new radiotherapy machines.

However, Chancellor Rachel Reeves warned that budgetary measures may not be enough to undo “14 years of damage” to the NHS.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said that although the NHS remains a priority for the government, there is no magical solution to the crisis in health care.

“I can’t pretend that we’re going to be able to wave a Labour magic wand and make all of those problems go away this winter,” Streeting said.

According to the NHS National Medical Director Sir Stephen Powis, this winter will put the service under more pressure than ever before.

“While we continue to treat record numbers and deal with record demand, it is clear that there is still much further to go to return performance to the levels patients should expect and we will continue to work with government on the 10 Year Health Plan to address the needs of patients,” he said.

The government’s 10-year plan for the NHS will be published in spring 2025 and will include “big shifts” in health care, such as neighbourhood health centres, preventative health care, and reform of patient health records management.

PA Media contributed to this report.