‘Unacceptable amount of people waiting over 12 hours’ – SAM president (14 August)

Commenting on the release today (14 August) of the latest NHS performance data, Dr Nick Murch, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “These figures again highlight the extent of the crisis across urgent and emergency care, with an unacceptable amount of people – 35,467 – waiting over 12 hours in emergency departments, often suffering avoidable harm.  

“Clinicians across the UK are reporting this week as one of the worst they have experienced, with no sign of the brief respite seen in the immediate aftermath of recent strike action, yet there remains no tangible and immediate action to address urgent workforce and capacity issues.

“Sadly, instead, recent commentary and reporting suggests a growing reliance on selective or misleading interpretations of NHS data, as highlighted this week in analysis by the Nuffield Trust which calls into question claims the NHS is being turned around. 

“This is similar to what is being seen in many urgent and emergency care (UEC) settings where some areas are being rebranded to “off the clock” areas, improving performance data but not changing the patient journey or experience.

“If political narratives override clinical realities the system will not recover, so it is essential there is transparency about how performance is measured and reported and an acceptance that things must and will change.”