A&E waits: Hundreds of patients a week in England may have died unnecessarily

Published

2 years ago

April 1, 2024

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More than 250 patients a week in England may have died unnecessarily last year due to very long waits for a bed in A&E, new estimates suggest.

A study by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) suggests patients are put at risk by spending hours in A&E, particularly after a decision has been made to admit them.

The NHS recovery plan set a target in March for 76% of patients attending A&E to be admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours.

But data for the month shows just 70.9% of patients were seen within that time.

In February, the number of people waiting more than 12 hours in A&E departments – from a decision to admit to actually being admitted – was 44,417.

For its new excess death estimates, the RCEM used a study of more than five million NHS patients published in the Emergency Medicine Journal (EMJ) in 2021.

This found there was an excess death for every 72 patients that spent eight to 12 hours in A&E.

The risk of death increased after five hours and got worse with longer waiting times.

In 2022, the RCEM said it believed 300 to 500 excess deaths were likely to have occurred in England each week using this calculation.

But after a Freedom of Information audit of NHS trusts to refine this figure, it found that 65% of people waiting 12 hours or more in A&E are patients waiting for a hospital bed.

NHS data for England shows more than 1.5 million patients waited 12 hours or more in major emergency departments in 2023, meaning more than a million of those were waiting for a bed.

The RCEM has calculated that, when looking solely at patients awaiting admission, an average of 268 excess deaths are likely to have occurred each week in 2023, which is “only 17 fewer than 2022 when applying the same method”.

The college added that patients delayed in the back of ambulances, “of which there are thousands”, are not included in the figures but are also at risk.

Professor Pat Cullen, general secretary and chief executive of the Royal College of Nurses, said her members reported hospital corridors “packed with patients” and were living with the reality of the new study’s findings.

She added: “This crisis is taking lives and nursing staff in England’s hospitals are forced to witness it every shift.

“Care is not only undignified but fatally unsafe.

“One nurse told me a lady had died on a trolley in a corridor and it went unnoticed far too long – that is the current state of our health service.”

Dr Adrian Boyle, president of the RCEM, said: “The direct correlation between delays and mortality rates is clear. Patients are being subjected to avoidable harm.

“Urgent intervention is needed to put people first. Patients and staff should not bear the consequences of insufficient funding and under-resourcing.

“We cannot continue to face inequalities in care, avoidable delays and death.”

Asked about the figures by Sky News, business minister Kevin Hollinrake pointed to “huge demand-side pressures” – like admissions and attendances at A & E being up 8% year-on-year.

The minister said the “extra demand” was partially down to “demographics”, which makes “life difficult in providing health care and social care in our system”.

He also blamed strikes in the NHS for the situation in the health service.

Mr Hollinrake said 110,000 more doctors and nurses work in the NHS now when compared to 2010, and said the government has brought in a 13% real-terms increase in funding after inflation over the past five years.

NHS England said hospitals were responding to “significant increases in demand for A&E”, with attendance up by 8.6% in February, and emergency admissions up by 7.7%.

It added: “The latest published data shows our urgent and emergency care recovery plan – backed by extra funding with more beds, capacity and greater use of measures like same day emergency care – is delivering improvements, alongside continued work with our colleagues in community and social care to discharge patients when they are medically fit to go home, freeing up beds for other patients.

“The cause of excess deaths is down to several different factors and so it is right that the experts at the ONS – as the executive branch of the stats authority – continue to analyse these causes.”

The Department of Health and Social Care added: “We are committed to ensuring people get the emergency care they need, when they need it, and all patients attending A&E are assessed by a doctor or nurse before any treatment takes place, to ensure the most seriously unwell people are treated first.

“We are determined to continue improving experiences for patients and making access to care faster, simpler and fairer.

“We are making progress in reducing A&E waiting times, including adding an extra 5,000 permanent staffed beds this winter to increase capacity and help patients be seen as quickly as possible.”

UK

Search for suspects after ‘pepper spray assault’ at Heathrow Airport

Published

4 hours ago

December 7, 2025

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Search for suspects after 'pepper spray assault' at Heathrow Airport

Police are investigating after a “number of people” were believed to have been attacked with pepper spray by a group of men who then fled.

Officers were called at 8.11am to a multi-storey car park at Terminal 3 following reports of multiple people being assaulted, said the Metropolitan Police.

A statement by the force said: “A number of people were sprayed with what is believed to be a form of pepper spray by a group of men who then left the scene.”

What we know so far
• Several assaulted with ‘pepper spray’
• One arrest – police hunt for more suspects
• Incident said to involve people known to each other
• Incident not being treated as terrorism
• 21 people treated by ambulance service – five taken to hospital
• Injuries not believed to be life-threatening
• Traffic disruption reported – but train lines since reopened

Live updates on Heathrow incident

Armed police attended and one man was arrested on suspicion of assault. He remains in custody and enquiries continue to trace further suspects.

Police are not treating the Heathrow incident as terrorism.

London Ambulance Service also attended the scene and treated 21 people, including five who were taken to hospital. Their injuries are not believed to be life-changing or life-threatening.

There is currently some disruption to traffic in the area and Terminal 3 remains open.

Increased police presence

Commander Peter Stevens said: “At this stage, we believe the incident involved a group of people known to each other, with an argument escalating and resulting in a number of people being injured.

“Our officers responded quickly and there will be an increased police presence at Heathrow Airport throughout the morning, to continue enquiries and ensure the safety of those in the area.

“We are not treating this incident as terrorism. I understand the public’s concerns and would like to thank those in the area for their cooperation this morning.”

‘Significant incident’

The London Ambulance Service said a “significant incident” was declared.

There was a “full deployment” of resources and the ambulance service is treating it as ongoing.

A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: “We were called at 8.14am today to assist emergency service colleagues at an incident near Terminal 3 at Heathrow Airport. Firefighters remain at the scene.”

Heathrow is advising passengers to allow extra time when travelling to the airport and to check with their airline for any queries.

There was disruption to train and Tube services, with some delays on the Elizabeth Line and the Piccadilly Line.

National Rail said on its website that lines had been reopened allowing trains to call at Heathrow “following the emergency services dealing with an incident at the airport”.

It said: “Although lines have now reopened, disruption is expected to continue whilst services return to normal, delays of up to 10 minutes and cancellations can be expected until 11.45am.”

National Highways East said on X: “A serious incident within the @HeathrowAirport Tunnel has resulted in the closure of the #M4 spur road southbound between M4 and J4A.

“@metpoliceuk responding. We’ll keep you updated.”

It later said: “Incident has been resolved and all closures lifted on the #M4 southbound @HeathrowAirport spur road between #M4 and J4A.”

People on social media have reported vehicles were being searched at the airport.

A user on X said there was a “major backlog of cars unable to leave the vicinity or enter the drop-off zone” at Terminal 3.

In footage on X, several armed police were seen in a car park.

UK

England and Scotland fans discover where their opening World Cup games will be played

Published

22 hours ago

December 6, 2025

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England and Scotland fans discover where their opening World Cup games will be played

England and Scotland fans have found out where their World Cup group games will be played when the tournament kicks off in June.

England, who are in Group L, will begin their tournament against Croatia in Dallas at 4pm EST (9pm BST) on 17 June. They will then go on to face Ghana in Boston at 4pm EST (9pm BST) on 23 June and Panama in New Jersey, New York, at 5pm EST (10pm BST) on 27 June.

Scotland are in Group C, and their first match will be against Haiti in Boston at 9pm EST on 13 June (2am GMT the following morning).

They will go up against Morocco also in Boston at 6pm EST (11pm GMT) on 19 June and then Brazil in Miami at 6pm EST (11pm GMT) on 24 June.

Fans are expected to rush to sort their travel and accommodation plans now that they know where and when the matches take place.

Wales and Northern Ireland have yet to find out if they will qualify.

Wales must face a play-off against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Cardiff, then either Italy or Northern Ireland, if they are victorious.

If they beat these play-off opponents, they will secure their place in Group B alongside Canada, Qatar and Switzerland.

However, Northern Ireland will also be vying to guarantee their spot in the same group if they can beat Italy and then either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina.

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UK

World Cup 2026 – who England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland will play

Published

1 day ago

December 6, 2025

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World Cup 2026 - who England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland will play

Scotland and England now know who they will face in the group stage of the next summer’s world cup.

But the fates of Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Wales won’t be determined until they compete in pre-tournament play-off matches in March.

England are in Group L along with Croatia, Panama and Ghana. Their first match will be against Croatia, who beat them in the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Scotland’s first match will be against Haiti, in Group C.

Brazil and Morocco are the other Group C teams – both countries were also in the same opening group as Scotland in the 1998 World Cup in France.

Wales have yet to find out if they will qualify as they must face a play-off against Bosnia and Herzegovina in Cardiff, and then either Italy or Northern Ireland, if they are victorious.

If they can overcome these play-off opponents then they will secure their place in Group B along with Canada, Qatar and Switzerland. But Northern Ireland will also be vying and hoping to guarantee their spot in the same group if they can beat Italy and then either Wales or Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Republic of Ireland also need to get through the play-offs first and are paired against the Czech Republic for their semi-final. Should Ireland win that match, they will need to beat either North Macedonia or Denmark to get to the finals where an opening group containing joint hosts Mexico, South Africa and South Korea awaits.