News
‘Crisis in UK emergency departments an ongoing national scandal’ – SAM president
Following the release of a report by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) this evening (20 June) which showed more than 90% of A&E doctors said patients are coming to harm due to the current crisis in UK emergency departments, Dr Nick Murch, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “We echo the…
Read More‘Pleasing Labour is recognising issue of delayed discharges and considering solutions’ says SAM past president (18 June 2024)
Commenting on the Labour Party’s plan to use part of NHS budget to buy beds in care homes to help reduce overcrowding in hospitals, long waits in A&Es and patients waiting for extended periods in ambulances, Dr Tim Cooksley, immediate past president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “Degrading and harmful corridor care in…
Read More‘Urgent regulation needed for online weight loss drugs’ – SAM president-elect (14 June 2024)
Commenting on concerns around patients requiring acute and emergency treatment in hospital after purchasing weight loss injections from online pharmacies, Dr Vicky Price, president-elect of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “I and many other colleagues in acute medicine across the UK are very concerned about the increasing numbers of patients we are seeing with…
Read More‘Strain on urgent and emergency care increasingly causing harm’ – SAM president (13 June 2024)
Commenting on the latest NHS performance data released today (13 June) which showed, among other things, that one in 10 patients attending emergency departments in May waited 12 hours or more and 53.3% of patients who were ready to be discharged from hospitals were unable to be due to a lack of social care provision,…
Read More‘Health MOTs in A&Es will not stop patients languishing in corridors’ says SAM past president (12 June 2024)
Commenting on NHS England’s announcement that hospitals will be asked to deliver health MOTs to older patients presenting with frailty-related conditions in emergency departments, Dr Tim Cooksley, immediate past president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “It is often too late once a patient is already in an emergency department and this will not…
Read MorePatients in corridors ‘appalling and trajectory terrifying’ (09 June 2024)
Commenting on the Liberal Democrats’ plans to tackle ambulance delays ahead of the official launch of the party’s general election manifesto 2024, Dr Tim Cooksley, immediate past president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “Even though the election is being run during summer months, thousands of acute medical patients have been languishing in hospital…
Read More‘NHS has slipped inexorably into eternal winter’ – SAM past president (09 May 2024)
Commenting on the latest NHS performance data released today (09 May) which showed, among other things, that one patient in every 10 who attended an emergency department in April waited 12 hours or more, Dr Tim Cooksley, immediate past president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “The NHS has slipped inexorably into a state…
Read MoreFailure to meet new A&E target “tragically inevitable and predictable” – SAM immediate past president
The latest NHS performance data released today (11 April) shows, among other things: *74.4% of patients were seen within four hours in all A&E departments in March 2024. This compares with 71.3% in February 2024 and 71.5% in March 2023. *There were 140,181 four-hour delays from decision to admit to admission in March. Of these,…
Read MoreNumber of 12 hour waits ‘staggering and simply unacceptable’ – SAM past president
The latest NHS performance data released today (14 March) showed, among other things: Dr Tim Cooksley, immediate past president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “The appalling experience patients and staff in acute care are suffering daily is reflected in the enormous number of patients waiting more than 12 hours for a bed. “These…
Read More‘Older patients increasingly experiencing long waits and degrading corridor care’ – SAM president-elect
In response to an enquiry from The Independent regarding the scale of risk to elderly patients in the current context of short staffing and boarding on medical wards, Dr Vicky Price, president-elect of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “Older patients are increasingly receiving care well below the standards they should expect and that staff…
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