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The NHS has apologised after almost 1,000 patients were waiting longer than four hours for a bed in Hull’s A&E last month.
Data from the NHS shows 973 people were left waiting more than four hours for a ward bed at Hull Royal Infirmary in January 2020, which is the highest number since June 2015.
The statistics released by the NHS cover the remit of Hull University Hospitals NHS Trust, which includes Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital.
Emma Latimer, accountable officer for NHS Hull Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and interim accountable officer for NHS East Riding of Yorkshire CCG, said: “This winter, local NHS staff have provided exceptional care in challenging circumstances.
“As a system we are sorry that some people are waiting too long to be seen but patient safety is always our priority and, as we are seeing more seriously ill people who require hospital admission, it can reduce the number of beds available.”
(Image: Jerome Ellerby)
Despite the record levels recorded in January, the trust did see an improvement last month in the overall waits faced by people arriving at A&E.
However, it was still far from the target that 95 per cent of people visiting A&E should be admitted, discharged or transferred within four hours of arriving.
At Hull University Teaching Hospitals, 60.4 per cent of people waited less than four hours, up from 59.6 per cent in December.
Ms Latimer said: “Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has introduced a new ‘patient streaming’ service to direct people to correct services when they need urgent but not emergency medical attention, such as the Urgent Treatment Centres or the GP Walk-In Service, and that is having a positive impact on reducing attendances.
“We continue to work across the health and social care system to ensure people can be admitted to hospital when they need to be, and safely discharged from hospital as soon as they are well enough.
Watch: Inside Hull Royal’s emergency care department
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“I would urge members of the public to continue to play their part by using the NHS111 telephone or online service as a first port of call for non-emergencies.”
Across England, 100,578 people waited more than four hours from a decision to admit them from A&E to getting a bed, according to the NHS England figures.
That’s the first time since records began in August 2010 that numbers have topped six figures.
There were 2,846 people who waited more than 12 hours in A&E for a bed, also a record high.
