Patients in London are enduring long waits in A&E, with reports of 12-hour delays and overcrowded hospitals amid a health crisis
London: Patients are sharing their tough experiences in A&E, waiting for hours just to get treated. The situation is pretty dire, with hospitals overwhelmed.
This winter, a nasty wave of flu and other illnesses has really pushed the health service to its limits. Some folks are even being treated in hallways because there’s no room.
Recent data shows that on January 6, a record number of patients were stuck in beds, even though they were ready to go home. It’s a real mess, with a 32% jump in just two weeks.
Many of these beds are occupied by older patients who can’t be discharged due to a lack of social care. This causes a backup in A&E, making it hard for ambulances to drop off new patients.
At Barnet Hospital, one flu patient waited a shocking 12 hours overnight after coughing up blood. Heather Drewell, 85, shared her experience of waiting three times, each time for 12 hours without even a sip of water.
She had to drink from the bathroom tap because the water machines were broken. After her visits, she was told to see her GP, but getting an appointment takes ages.
Another patient, Mahmoud, 62, decided to re-bandage his own arm after seeing the long line of people waiting. He used his army training to fix himself up instead of waiting around.
He praised the hospital staff, saying they were doing their best but just had too much on their plates. Shakla Zovack, 43, also had a rough time, waiting five hours with her daughter who had stomach cramps.
She said she’d think twice about going to A&E again. Some people, however, had better luck. Connall Gallagher, 27, only waited 30 minutes for treatment after a night out gone wrong.
He felt lucky and appreciated the NHS, especially since it’s free. But not everyone is so fortunate. June Argyle Stocker, 70, who has lung cancer, waited two days for a bed at Whipps Cross hospital.
She described being placed in a corridor with other patients, which felt chaotic and disorganized. Despite the chaos, she noted that the nurses were doing their best.
Even though the flu season might be easing up, London’s hospitals are still under a lot of pressure. Some have limited visitors and are asking people to wear masks to help stop the spread of germs.
On January 12, over 90% of beds were full, with some hospitals hitting 98% occupancy. It’s no wonder that over a fifth of ambulances took more than 30 minutes to hand over patients.
To cope, some NHS trusts have started diverting patients to other emergency departments. The Whittington Health NHS Trust had to do this multiple times in early January.
They even faced criticism for advertising shifts for nurses to provide care in corridors due to overcrowding. NHS guidelines say this should be a last resort.
A spokesperson for the Royal Free London NHS Trust apologized for the long waits and thanked staff for their hard work. They’re also planning a £10 million redevelopment to improve patient flow and reduce waiting times.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting expressed his shame over the situation, saying he’s seen patients in distress during his hospital visits. He promised to work on improving the system, but it’s going to take time.
Streeting acknowledged the hard work of NHS staff, who feel just as upset seeing patients in such tough conditions.
