Royal College of Nursing comments on latest NHS performance statistics for England
Responding to the latest NHS performance statistics for England Dame Donna Kinnair, Chief Executive and General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing said:
“While economists argue over how much of the NHS funding announced by PM this week is new money, today’s figures show the reality patients and staff are facing every day in our hospitals.
“Last month almost 60,000 of the very sickest patients had to wait more than four hours for a hospital bed after a decision was made to admit them as an emergency, a third more than this time last year. And over 400 had to wait more than 12 hours on trolleys and chairs, a delay that is never supposed to happen in the NHS.
“Nursing staff performed heroics when last month’s heatwave meant that extra patients came to hospital with dehydration and respiratory problems – cash for new buildings is always welcome, but the NHS desperately needs more staff to cope with these peaks in demand."
