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14
Dec
How is Harrogate hospital’s A&E performing amid winter pressures?
As Harrogate hospital A&E warns of long waits due to winter pressures, its performance against national targets continues to struggle.
This past week, officials at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust warned people that the emergency department at the hospital is “extremely busy”, and urged people only to attend A&E with severe or life-threatening conditions.
In light of the plea, the Stray Ferret has looked at the department’s performance to put into context the situation at our local hospital.
Thousands attend A&E
NHS England keeps a record of monthly A&E performances from across the country’s hospital trusts.
In November, Harrogate hospital saw 6,321 people attend its emergency department — slightly more than the 6,315 who attended in October.
Of those people, 4,341 were admitted, discharged or transferred in under four hours. But 1,980 people spent more than four hours in the emergency department.
Figures also show there were 502 "trolley waits" of four hours or more, and 96 of over 12 hours in November.
A "trolley wait" is defined as the time between when a decision is made to admit a patient to when they are actually admitted.
By comparison, 482 patients waited four hours or more in October and 52 spent 12 hours or more waiting.
Accident and emergency at Harrogate District Hospital.
For trusts across the country, the national target is for 95% of patients who attend A&E to be admitted, discharged or transferred in under four hours.
Last month in Harrogate, 68.7% were seen within that timeframe — a drop from 72.5% in October.
Waiting 10 hours
The figures underline the pressure the emergency department faces during winter.
The Stray Ferret has received reports of long waiting times at Harrogate’s A&E, and one person told us they walked out after waiting 10 hours for treatment last week.
Hospital admissions have increased sharply nationally due to an increase in covid, norovirus and respiratory syncytial virus.
In Harrogate, the situation is no different. The trust told the Stray Ferret previously that it had seen an uplift in respiratory viruses, particularly flu.
A spokesperson said:
For the last two weeks we have seen a significant numbers of patients with flu. Respiratory viruses are also leading to an increase in activity on the children's wards and our emergency department. We would encourage anyone who is eligible for the flu vaccination to have it so that they can be protected.
The situation has also led to some senior NHS officials to urge people to get vaccinated against respiratory viruses.
Prof Stephen Powis, the national medical director of the NHS, warned the number of admissions could continue to increase if people didn’t protect themselves with flu, covid and RSV jabs.
Meanwhile, Wes Streeting, the health secretary, has urged hospital trusts to put patient safety before waiting time targets this winter.
In a statement issued on Monday, he said:
We inherited a broken NHS that saw annual winter crisis as the norm. This year, we’re seeing record pressures on services as we move into December. This winter I want to see patient safety prioritised as we brace ourselves for the coming months. I’m asking trusts to focus on ambulance delays, handovers and the longest A&E waits.
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