Improvement in urgent care performance but significant challenges remain to bring down waiting times

Responding to the latest monthly NHS performance stats, Nuffield Trust Fellow Jessica Morris said:

“January saw a welcome improvement in A&E and ambulance waiting times. But this reflects just how difficult December was for health and care services rather than a more significant bounce-back in NHS performance. Urgent and emergency care was hit at all sides by the early and harsh flu season, ongoing Covid pressures, cold weather and industrial action. It is good to see things moving in the right direction again, but we aren’t through winter yet and we should not underestimate how much pressure NHS staff remain under.  

“In January, 72% of patients were admitted or discharged from A&E departments in under four hours, a significant improvement from December at 65%, but still far above the national target of 95%. There is still some way to go in reaching the more modest March 2024 objective of 76% waiting less than four hours.

“While we are seeing improvement in urgent and emergency care, waiting lists for routine treatment haven’t shifted much at all. It remains challenging for the NHS to throw the additional resources at getting waiting lists down while exposed to such extreme pressures for care elsewhere.”