Commenting on the Combined Performance Summary for September published this morning by NHS England, Nuffield Trust Director of Research Professor John Appleby said:
During September, record numbers of patients medically fit to be transferred from hospital were delayed in doing so. The increase in these delays in a single year was 33 per cent – the sharpest since records began. With a limited number of beds available, these delays are bad news not only for patients leaving hospital, but also for those waiting to get in.
John Appleby, Chief Economist and Director of Research at the Nuffield Trust
“During September, record numbers of patients medically fit to be transferred from hospital were delayed in doing so. The increase in these delays in a single year was 33 per cent – the sharpest since records began. With a limited number of beds available, these delays are bad news not only for patients leaving hospital, but also for those waiting to get in.
“We know that lack of social care provision is the fastest growing cause of these delays, and social care will be facing a funding gap of £1.9 billion next year. As we and the other two leading health think tanks said earlier this week, this must be addressed as an urgent priority in this month’s Autumn Statement.”
“Today’s figures also show us that, yet again, all of the major waiting times targets have been missed, with people waiting longer for A&E, routine surgery and cancer treatment. This reveals an NHS under enormous pressure as we look to the coming winter months. Longer waits for treatment are now par for the course for patients in the NHS.”
Notes to editors
- A selection of updated charts using today’s release have been published on the QualityWatch website. QualityWatch is a joint programme from the Nuffield Trust and Health Foundation monitoring how the quality of health and social care is changing over time.
- The full data release is available from the NHS England website.
- Earlier this week, the Nuffield Trust, The Kings Fund and The Health Foundation released a joint briefing looking at health and social care spending.