More than 1,000 patients a day in the UK are suffering “potential harm” due to delays in ambulance handovers, the Guardian has revealed.
Last year, 414,137 patients are thought to have experienced some form of harm while waiting in the back of an ambulance for a long time to be admitted. Of those, 44,409 people (more than 850 per week) suffered “serious potential harm”, meaning the delay caused permanent or long-term harm or death.
A Guardian study found that in the year to November 2024, ambulances were stuck outside waiting to drop off patients for more than 1.5 million hours (the equivalent of 187 years).
Experts say the figures are “staggering” and show how the NHS is faring amid a “perfect storm” of record demand for A&E, soaring numbers of 999 calls and a sicker and aging population. He said the above points indicate that the country is in a “vulnerable” state. .
Analysis of NHS data by the Guardian and the Association of Ambulance Officers (AACE) has highlighted the enormity of the challenge facing Keir Starmer as he prepares to plan how to save the NHS. .
Anna Parry, managing director of AACE, which represents heads of NHS ambulance services in England's 10 regions, said the data “speaks for itself”.
She added: “These numbers demonstrate what the ambulance industry has been saying for years: that thousands of patients are potentially being harmed every month as a direct result of delays in hospital handovers. “I'm emphasizing it,” he added.
Ambulance handover delays occur when an ambulance arrives at A&E but is unable to hand over the patient to staff because the ward is too busy. It also means that paramedics will not be able to leave their homes to care for other patients.
This delay means patients are forced to wait outside in the back of an ambulance or are transferred to A&E, with hospital staff unable to complete the handover from paramedics.
National guidelines state that patients arriving at an emergency department by ambulance must be handed over to the care of emergency medical staff within 15 minutes.
But a Guardian investigation found that targets were continually missed. Paramedics often wait outside hospitals for hours, sometimes working full 12-hour shifts, and waiting in ambulance lines prevents them from responding to other emergency calls.
Last week, almost a third (32.1%) of patients arriving by ambulance at a UK hospital waited at least 30 minutes before being handed over to an A&E team.
The Guardian's analysis is the first time a news organization has looked at a year's worth of data on delays in ambulance handovers and the potential harm caused.
Paramedics lost 1,641,522 hours handing over patients to A&E staff due to delays of more than 15 minutes in the 12 months to November 2024. This figure is an 18.5% increase compared to the same period last year, the study found.
AACE estimates that 414,137 patients may have been affected by delays of more than an hour last year. This is more than the population of Coventry, England's ninth largest city. This figure increased by 18.7% compared to the previous year.
Of the patients who suffered potential harm, it is estimated that 44,409 suffered severe harm. This figure also represents an 18.7% increase over the previous year.
Dr Adrian Boyle, dean of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, said the Guardian's findings were “alarming” and reflected the “insufficient capacity” of NHS emergency services.
“Emergency departments are so full that people are waiting in hospital hallways for ambulances, waiting in ambulances and waiting in ambulance trolleys, creating potential harm.
“There needs to be an urgent focus on ‘exit blocks’ – increasing the number of beds to move people from A&E to wards and ensuring those deemed medically well enough can go home. appropriate social care options.”
“Only then will we see meaningful change on the doorsteps of our hospitals.”
On Friday, NHS Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly reported a long queue of ambulances outside the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro, with many people medically fit to be discharged but waiting for proper treatment. A major incident has been declared due to the high number of A&E patients.
Rory Deighton, director of acute care networks at the NHS Confederation, said the Guardian's revelations exposed a crisis in emergency care.
“Unfortunately, as these figures show, patients often have to wait long hours for an ambulance, and as we have seen in recent days, even when patients arrive at the hospital, many emergency departments are We may be forced to use temporary solutions such as “Corridor Care'' to meet demand, potentially delaying handovers. ”
Mr Deighton said tackling “deficiencies in social care provision” was needed to reduce delays in ambulance handovers by speeding up hospital discharges and allowing more older people to avoid hospital admission in the first place. said that it is important.
“But the reality is that years of underinvestment in the NHS and social care, and rising levels of disease in the country, mean local health and care services are more vulnerable than ever. .”
Adam Brimelow, director of communications for NHS providers, said the figures were “very worrying”. He said the “perfect storm” of record A&E attendances, plus the sheer number of 999 calls in the most urgent categories, had created “real capacity challenges”.
“The last few months have seen our ambulance services at their busiest ever, with stretched teams struggling as demand goes through the roof and exceeds available resources.”
Mr Parry said it was vital there was a “primary focus” on reducing handover delays to ensure ambulances reached those most in need. The crisis was “not intractable,” she added.
The Department of Health and Social Care said long delays in ambulance deliveries were “completely unacceptable” and said plans to “rebuild” the NHS would improve emergency care.
The spokesperson added: “This includes the investment and reforms we have announced in social care, and the additional 1,000 GPs we are recruiting, which will help us better serve patients. “It will help them get there faster, keep them healthy and reduce the burden on ambulance services.”
A spokesperson for NHS England said that while handover delays had improved by this winter, there was “clearly much more work to do” to reduce “unacceptably long patient waiting times” in some parts of the country. ” he said.
The NHS was doing everything it could to prevent inevitable hospital admissions, “prioritizing the sickest patients”, treating patients at home where possible and only admitting patients to hospital if necessary.
