Home / Health / NHS Corridors Overwhelmed: 3,000 Patients Daily Wait
NHS Corridors Overwhelmed: 3,000 Patients Daily Wait
11 Jun
Summary
- Nearly 3,000 patients daily received corridor care in England last month.
- Corridor care defined as over 45 minutes waiting for an appropriate place.
- Ministers aim to eradicate corridor care by 2029.
In May, England's NHS saw nearly 3,000 patients per day receiving care in corridors or makeshift treatment areas. This practice, known as corridor care, is defined by waits exceeding 45 minutes for an appropriate clinical space.
The data, published for the first time, reveals the significant scale of the challenge. Of the daily instances, 2,241 occurred in A&E, while 669 were on wards. A small number of trusts accounted for a substantial portion of these cases.
Health Secretary James Murray stated corridor care is "unacceptable and undignified" and vowed to eliminate it by 2029. This initiative aims to improve patient dignity and safety, ensuring appropriate equipment and care are available.
Meanwhile, routine hospital treatment waiting lists in England rose in April for the first time in six months, reaching 7.22 million treatments. Urgent and emergency care also faced pressure, with only 75.7% of patients waiting less than four hours in A&E, falling short of the interim target.
Separately, two children have died from measles in England this year, with 736 cases reported so far. The UK Health Security Agency noted most cases involved unvaccinated children under 10.
