A&E departments across England recorded record low performance figures in December as the NHS crisis worsens. A total of 1.4 million visits were made to A&E departments across England last month, according to new figures released by the NHS today.
The NHS target is for 95% of attendances to be seen within four hours. Fewer than two-thirds of patients (65%) were seen within that time.
It’s the lowest percentage since at least August 2010, when 97% of patients were seen within four hours. In November, 69% of patients were seen within four hours, while at the same time last year it was 73%.
The situation at A&E departments has been declining for a number of years. The last time that the NHS reached its 95% target was in January 2015.
The number of patients waiting over 12 hours in A&E has also reached record levels. A total of 54,532 people waited over 12 hours to be admitted once a decision to admit was made.
That’s the highest number on record, up from 37,837 in November, 12,859 in December 2021, and 3,745 in December 2020.
