A&E units across the UK are struggling to hit their waiting time targets according to latest figures. (http://www.bbc.co.
But London GP Dr Louise Irvine of the National Health Action Party has been studying the A&E figures and says the breach in waiting times is NOT because more people are visiting A&E units:
“It’s incorrect to say that A&E waiting time targets are being missed because of a rise in the number of people turning up at emergency departments. If you compare the figures, you’ll find that fewer people are actually attending A&E departments now than in the summer.
“The real problem is the failure to deal with patients who attend A&E. That’s down to insufficient A&E doctors to treat patients, not enough hospital beds into which to move patients who need admitting, greater pressure on A&Es in areas where other local A&Es have been closed down, and what’s known as ‘exit block’ – where patients can’t be discharged into the community because there aren’t enough social care services to support them, such as district nurses or community care. All of these factors are down to government cuts to the NHS and to local authority budgets.”
Check out official A&E statistics here:
No comments:
Post a Comment