Press
Senior medics warn NHS pressures unsustainable and national plan required urgently
The Society for Acute Medicine (SAM) has warned that pressures being seen across the NHS are at unsustainable levels and a national plan is required urgently (06 August). Many hospital trusts are running on bed occupancy levels between 95% and 98% despite opening escalation beds – with some at 100% occupancy. This comes at a…
Read MoreUnacceptable waits for urgent care must not be new normal – SAM president
Commenting on the latest NHS performance data released today (14 July) and the current pressures facing the system, Dr Tim Cooksley, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “The number of patients waiting for prolonged periods for urgent care remains unacceptable and must not be seen as the new normal. “Increasingly people will themselves,…
Read MoreSAM president warns of “appalling concoction” of poor performance and no easy short-term fixes as latest NHS data is released
Commenting on the release today (16 June) on the latest NHS performance data – which shows 73% of patients were seen within four hours in all A&E departments, 60.2% in type 1 departments, more than 19,000 patients waited longer than 12 hours, 439,300 patients have been waiting six weeks or more for a diagnostic test…
Read More‘Pressures are at unsustainable levels’ says SAM president
Commenting on the release today of the latest NHS performance data, which shows the highest recorded number of 12-hour waits in emergency departments and a record low of 71.6 per cent of patients seen within four hours, Dr Tim Cooksley, president of the Society for Acute Medicine (SAM), said: “The troubling situation we are seeing…
Read MoreSAM president warns NHS pressures show no sign of abating
The president of the Society for Acute Medicine (SAM) has today (09 April) warned NHS pressures show no sign of abating and the system is becoming “increasingly compromised”. Dr Tim Cooksley said patients were being put at risk due to overcrowding in hospitals and long handover delays preventing ambulances from getting back on the road.…
Read MoreNHS system becoming increasingly compromised – SAM president
Commenting on current and rising pressures in the NHS today (06 April), Dr Tim Cooksley, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “Spring has yet to bring any relief to NHS and social care which continues to be under immense strain. This is reflected in current performance data and the statements from hospitals and…
Read MoreNHS performance data shows another month of ‘extreme struggle’ and need for action on workforce – SAM president
Following the release today of the latest NHS performance data which shows among other things that the number of people waiting for non-urgent operations on the NHS in England has risen to more than 6.1 million people and 16,404 people had to wait more than 12 hours in A&E departments to be admitted to hospital,…
Read MoreLatest NHS performance data highlights “huge pressure” on urgent and emergency care – SAM president
Commenting today (10 February) on the latest NHS performance data which shows more than six million people are now waiting for non-urgent treatment and a record 16,558 people had to wait more than 12 hours in A&E departments in England in January, Dr Tim Cooksley, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “Urgent and…
Read MoreHealth secretary’s NHS elective recovery announcement ‘fails to address key issues’ – SAM past president
Commenting on today’s NHS elective recovery plan announcement by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Dr Susan Crossland, immediate past president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “While we support developing plans to help reduce the backlog of patients waiting for NHS care, the announcement today from the health secretary is…
Read MoreNHS waiting lists ‘an emergency which requires an urgent coherent plan’ says SAM president
Commenting today (07 February) on the issue of delayed plans to tackle the backlog of people waiting for NHS treatment, Dr Tim Cooksley, president of the Society for Acute Medicine, said: “The huge number of people on NHS waiting lists is an emergency which requires an urgent and coherent plan to ensure patients receive timely…
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