Thursday 23 January 2025
As new data reveals the mounting issues facing the health service in Wales, RCEM has urged the Government there not to neglect Urgent and Emergency Care.
Performance data for the NHS in Wales – published today (23 January 2025) shows that there are serious issues across the board.
Waits for elective care have reached a level never seen before, the percentage of people accessing urgent cancer treatment within the target period has dropped again and for those needing an ambulance or attending an Emergency Department the picture is as dire.
The data reveals that in December 2024 for Emergency Departments in major hospitals:
There was some positive news with the figure for ‘delayed discharges’ (where patients are forced to remain in hospital because of a lack of community-based care) dropping for the fourth month in a row.
Dr Rob Perry, Vice President of RCEM Wales, said: “Today’s data set clearly shows there are significant problems across the health system in Wales and it is deeply worrying.
“The Welsh Government has a huge task on its hands if it is to get the whole system working as it should. However, it must be whole system approach – one area cannot be prioritised at the expense of others, such as Emergency Care.
“As we know overcrowding, and long stays in our Emergency Department create a significant risk to patient safety – confirmed just last week by the ONS.
“I note that in his response this morning the Heath Minister did no not reference the ED data at all – which is very concerning.
“If this issue is not addressed more people will be put in danger and ultimately more lives lost.”
The new data comes as the risks associated with problems in accessing urgent care have been starkly demonstrated by the deaths of two people in Wales.
In the first, a prevention of future deaths report has been submitted to the Health Secretary relating to 16-year-old Jackson Yeow who died after waiting nine hours for an ambulance. The coroner at his inquest criticised Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board for ‘normalising’ treating patients in corridors.
And in the second a father of two from Cardiff died from sepsis after waiting more than 14 hours for an ambulance a few weeks before last Christmas.
Last week a report released by The Royal College of Nursing detailed harrowing testimony of corridor care across the UK, including Wales – with stories of nurses feeling “guilt” in being unable to provide “dignity” and “basic care” to vulnerable patients.
