England Sees 320 Weekly Deaths Linked to A&E Bed Delays

New figures from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) estimate that approximately 320 patients per week, or over 16,600 annually, may have died needlessly in England in 2024 due to excessive waits for hospital beds in Accident and Emergency (A&E) departments, marking a 20% increase from 2023. RCEM's president, Dr. Adrian Boyle, described the scale of these deaths as equivalent to two airplane crashes every week, emphasizing the personal tragedies behind the statistics. The excess death estimates are based on a study indicating one additional death for every 72 patients waiting eight to 12 hours for a bed, with mortality risk rising after just five hours. In 2024, more than 1.7 million patients waited 12 hours or longer in A&E, with nearly 70% waiting for admission to a hospital ward. These findings highlight a systemic crisis causing patients to endure prolonged waits often on trolleys in corridors, and they will be central to discussions at the launch of the new All-Party Parliamentary Group on Emergency Care, chaired by Labour MP and A&E doctor Dr. Rosena Allin-Khan. The group aims to address the harm caused by delays and the practice of 'corridor care' in emergency departments.