NHS Performance Tracker

November A&E performance data

Summary:

• There were 1,428,050 attendances to major EDs, the highest on record for the month of November.
• Only 57% of patients were transferred, admitted, or discharged within four hours.
• There were 552,845 admissions (all). And there were 408,170 Type 1 admissions, the highest for November on record.
• 25.5% of admissions experienced a four-hour trolley wait
• 150,696 patients waited 12 hours or more in Type 1 EDs this month. The second highest for any November on record.
• 10.7% of total attendances experienced a wait of 12 hours or more.
• Bed occupancy stood at 94.1%. Hospitals would need an additional 10,697 beds to reduce occupancy levels to 85%.

Supplementary ECDS Analysis November 2024 provisional (12-hour length of stay data measured from the time of arrival) data shows

• 150,696 patients waited 12 hours or more in Type 1 EDs this month. This is a 7.5% decrease from the previous month but an increase of 4.1% from November 2023
• 10.7% of total attendances experienced a wait of 12 hours or more. This is a decrease of 0.4 percentage points from the previous month and 0.2 from November 2023.

The latest Emergency Department performance figures published by NHS England for November 2024 show:

• There were 2,311,229 attendances to EDs (all), the busiest November on record. So far this year, each month has exceeded any previous attendance record held for that month.
• There were 1,428,050 attendances to major EDs, the highest on record for the month of November and a decrease of 1.7% from last month.
• 72.1% of patients were transferred, admitted, or discharged within four hours, up 2.4 percentage points from the same month last year, but down 0.9 percentage points compared to last month.
• In major EDs this figure stood at 57%, up 1.6 percentage points compared to the same month last year, but down 1.1 percentage points compared to last month.
• There were 552,845 admissions (all). And there were 408,170 Type 1 admissions, the highest for November on record.
• 28.6% of Type 1 attendances were admitted – the proportion of attendances being admitted has stayed relatively static this year.
• There were 140,782 four-hour trolley waits, an increase of 8,007 compared to the previous month and an increase of 5,490 compared to the same month of last year. 25.5% of admissions experienced a four-hour trolley wait.
• There were 45,791 12-hour trolley waits.

Beds data for November 2024 shows:

• 100,149 beds were available, which is 547 more beds than last month and 1,305 more than in November 2023.
• Despite the increase in available beds, the level of occupancy has increased by 0.2 percentage points from the previous month (93.9%) and now stands at 94.1%. This is 0.7 percentage points lower than November 2023.
• Hospitals would need an additional 10,697 beds to reduce occupancy levels to 85%.

Scotland

Emergency Department performance data for Scotland, October 2024:

Flourish graphs here.

Summary:

• Long waits have increased compared to last month, and 4-hour and 12-hour performance in Scotland was the worst since records begun.
• Long waits have increased significantly since the 2010s. Seven years ago, in October 2017, only 72 people waited 12 hours or more in Emergency Departments across Scotland. In October 2024, 7,115 people waited this long.
• Since October 2017, the numbers waiting four hours or more has increased by almost 5 times, eight hours or more by 25 times, and 12 hours or more by 100 times. Despite attendance increasing by only 0.8% in the same period.
• Delay to patients discharge from hospital is a key reason that ED doctors cannot admit patients into hospitals from the ED and therefore causes long waits.
• October was the highest number of beds occupied per day due to people delayed since the guidelines changed in 2016 (2,029 beds).

Data:

• In October 2024, there were 114,560 attendances at major Emergency Departments in Scotland. This is a 0.6% decrease from the previous month.
  • 63% of patients were seen within four hours at major (Type 1) Emergency Departments. This is the worst four-hour performance for any October since records began in 2011.
  • 42,404% (37%) of patients waited over four hours in major Emergency Departments.
  • The number waiting more than four hours is almost 5 times the number in October 2017.

• 15,448 (13.5%) patients waited eight hours or more in Emergency Departments.
  • This is the second highest proportion of eight hour waits for any October on record.
  • The numbers waiting more than eight hours 25 times the number in October 2017.

• 7,155 (6.25%) patients waited twelve hours or more in Emergency Departments.
  • This is the highest proportion of 12-hour waits for any October on record. And the fourth highest for any month ever.
  • The numbers waiting more than 12 hours was 100 times the number in October 2017 (72).

• There was an average of 2,029 beds occupied per day due to delayed discharges, an increase of 61 beds from the previous month.
  • This is the highest number of beds occupied per day due to people delayed since the guidelines changed in 2016.
  • There was a total of 62,914 days spent in hospital by people whose discharge was delayed. This is a 11% increase on October 2023 (56,762).

Wales NHS Emergency Department Performance Data – November 2024

Summary:

• The proportion of patients waiting four-, eight-, and 12-hours or more has all increased compared to November 2023.
• 43% of patients waited four hours or longer in an Emergency Department. 23.3% waited eight hours or longer. And 14.7% of patients waited 12 hours or longer.

• In the last 7 years, the numbers waiting four hours or more increased by double, the numbers waiting more than eight hours has increased by more than 2.5 times, and the numbers waiting more than 12 hours has more than tripled. This is despite attendance only increasing by 1.1% in the same period.
• The number of adults occupying a hospital bed who experienced a delay of more than 48 hours from the point when they were deemed ready to leave the hospital was 1,473. The most common reason for delay was assessment issues and care home placement delays.

Figures:

• 66,533 people attended major emergency care facilities in November 2024. This is 3.2% lower than last month (68,750).

• Overall, 57% of patients in major EDs were admitted, transferred, or discharged within four hours from arrival.

• This is a 0.5 percentage-point increase from last month.

• 43% of patients in major EDs waited longer than four hours (28,634 patients). This is 1.1 percentage points more than the same month last year.
  • The number of patients waiting more than four hours has decreased by 4.3% from last month (29,924).
  • The number of people waiting more than four hours has increased by double (+105%) compared with November 2017 (14,002).

• 23.3% of major ED attendances waited more than eight hours (15,497 patients). This means that nearly a quarter of patients were delayed eight hours or more at a major emergency department.
  • This figure has decreased by 0.1 percentage points compared to last month. But is 0.7 percentage points more than the same month last year.

• The number of people waiting more than eight hours has increased by 2 and a half times (+151%) compared with November 2017 (6,186).

• 14.7% of major ED attendances waited more than 12 hours (9,749 patients). This means that one in seven patients were delayed by 12 hours or more.
  • This is 0.9 percentage points more than the same month last year.
  • The number of people waiting more than 12 hours has more than tripled (+211%) compared with November 2017 (3,135).
• The number of adults occupying a hospital bed who experienced a delay of more than 48 hours from the point when they were deemed ready to leave the hospital was 1,473.
  • This is 94 less than the same month last year and 73 less than last month.

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland Quarter 2 2024/25 (July-September 24) Emergency Department data:

See Flourish slides.

Summary:

• We are heading into a disastrous winter for EDs in Northern Ireland from what has already been a disastrous summer and early autumn.

• Despite being some of the warmest months of the year, July to September 2024 was the worst quarter on record for 12-hour performance in Northern Ireland.
  • More than one in five patients (20.6%) waited 12 hours or longer in an ED. In Quarter 2 2017/18, this figure was only 1%.
  • 21.5% of patients waited this long in September.

• In September, the median time that admitted patients waited in the ED was 16 hours and 30 minutes. Evidence shows that it is dangerous for sick patients to wait for long periods in the ED.

• Four-hour performance saw a very slight improvement on last Quarter. But it was still the third worst quarter ever, with more than 60% of patients waiting longer than four-hours in the ED.

Figures:

• The average number of monthly attendances for this quarter was 51,409. 4% less than last quarter.

• On average, 37.4% of patients were seen and resulted in a subsequent admission, transfer, or discharge within four hours for each month.
  • This was 0.5 percentage points more than the previous quarter average. But 1.1 percentage points less than the same quarter last year.
  • More than 60% of patients waited longer than four hours in the ED.
  • September was the second worst month ever for four-hour performance. Only 36.4% of patients were seen in four hours.

• On average, 20.6% of patients waited more than 12 hours in an Emergency Department.
  • This is the worst quarter 12-hour performance since records began.
  • It means more than one in five patients had to wait longer than 12 hours in the ED.
  • A total of 31,786 people waited longer than 12 hours.. This is 19 times more than Quarter 2 17/18.

• The quarter average for the monthly median time that admitted patients spent in an Emergency Department was 15 hours and 10 minutes.
  • This is the longest wait time on record. In September, the median time spent in ED by admitted patients was 16 hours and 30 minutes.
  • Non-admitted patients spent on average 4 hours 27 minutes in the ED.