‘12-hour waits signify profound failure within healthcare system’ says SAM president (06 May)

Commenting today (06 May) on the Royal College of Emergency Medicine’s ‘Care of Older People 2023-24’, which showed more than a million older people faced waits of 12 hours or more in emergency departments in England last year, Dr Nick Murch, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “This situation, where over a million older patients are known to have endured prolonged periods of over 12 hours in emergency departments, frequently in unsuitable and undignified settings such as corridors, is a matter of grave concern.

“It is clear that, despite the considerable dedication and hard work of multidisciplinary teams including emergency medicine, acute medicine, and acute frailty services, these extended waiting times signify a profound failure within our healthcare system. 

“We must ensure that 12-hour waits in emergency departments again become an infrequent exception rather than the norm.”