Ambulance response times and A&E waits are the worst on record, new figures show.
The figures for England showed a record 54,532 people waited more than 12 hours in A&E departments last month, from a decision to admit to actually being admitted. That is a 44 per cent increase from 37,837 in November, and the highest total since records began in August 2010.
It follows an exclusive report by The Independent on Wednesday that the number of patients waiting more than 12 hours in A&E for treatment had exceeded 50,000 a week for the first time.
The NHS England figures show the average response time in December for ambulances dealing with the most urgent incidents, defined as calls from people with life-threatening illnesses or injuries, was 10 minutes and 57 seconds. This is also the worst performance on record, against a target of seven minutes.
It comes as health leaders battle huge waits in other services such as operations and diagnostics, which have been exacerbated by the Covid pandemic. Medics have also had to deal with a spike in flu and Covid cases and a shortage of beds in hospitals.
The health service has also been hit by a wave of strike action lately, with ambulance staff and 999 call handlers walking out on Wednesday in a row over pay and conditions. Strikes by NHS workers started in December last year.
Nurses have also taken industrial action and are due to walk out again on 18 and 19 January after negotiations on salaries earlier in the weekend ended without agreement.
The operational standard is that at least 95 per cent of patients attending A&E should be admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours, but this has not been met nationally since 2015.
Meanwhile, the number of patients waiting more than 52 weeks to start hospital treatment has fallen to 406,575, new figures show.
This was down slightly from the record high of 410,983 recorded at the end of October. It is the first month-on-month fall since February 2022, officials said.
The government and NHS England have set the ambition of eliminating all waits of more than a year by March 2025.
The number of people in England waiting to start routine hospital treatment has fallen slightly from a record high.
An estimated 7.19 million people were waiting to start treatment at the end of November, NHS England said.
This is down from 7.21 million in October, which was the highest number since records began in August 2007.
An 87-year-old man died of an apparent lung infection following a 17-hour ambulance wait and a further 13 hours outside A&E after breaking his pelvis.
William Owen, who also suffered from Alzheimer’s disease, was left confused, distressed and in urgent need of care after a fall outside his home in Llandeilo, north Wales, his family said.
However, after being told the wait for an ambulance would be four to six hours, Owen had to be carried to his home by his neighbours. It took 17 hours for first responders to arrive.
Responding to Thursday’s figures, NHS England’s national medical director, Professor Sir Stephen Powis, said they showed how hard staff were having to work in the face of “extreme pressure”.
He added: “As staff responded to record A&E attendances, 999 calls and emergency ambulance callouts as the ‘twindemic’ led to unprecedented levels of respiratory illness in hospital, they also continued to deliver for patients, with more people than ever before receiving diagnostic tests and cancer treatment.
“These figures show just how hard our staff are working, not only in the face of extreme pressure but also in bringing down the Covid backlogs and checking more people for cancer than ever before in one month.
“The NHS will keep its foot on the accelerator to continue to make progress on the Covid backlog and hospitals have today been asked to ensure anyone waiting longer than 18 months has their treatment booked in before March.
“While services continue to be pressured, it’s important the public continue to play their part by using the best services for their care – using 999 in an emergency and otherwise using 111 online and by getting their vaccinations if eligible.”
