Emergency medicine
is a lack of alternative services or capacity in the community, the knock-on effect is that there is nowhere for A&Es to admit patients too, hospital A&E waiting rooms reach capacity, and the end result is ambulances queuing out the door, staff under pressure, and patients not getting the care they need on time. “Tackling A&E successfully will involve thinking about the health and care system in the round and ensuring that it is set up to deal with not only peaks of sudden demand but also to prevent rising levels of poor health across the country that leads to the steep increases in demand in the first place. “When it came into power the government
promised a ‘prevention revolution’ to improve the health of the nation and a more joined- up approach to solving problems that span different parts of government. Reigniting this
‘health mission’ approach could be an important step in both resetting the health of the nation and improving patient’s experience of A&E care.” RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive,
Professor Nicola Ranger, added: “This report confirms what we are hearing from nursing staff on the ground, that there has been precious little improvement to the serious pressures they have been facing for years. Overcrowding and corridor care are symptoms of the failure to get to grips with care in alternate settings, including in social care and the community. “Fixing social care is essential to addressing
this crisis, with far too many patients stuck in hospital despite being ready to be discharged. This fails the vulnerable people who need proper care and support, while preventing attempts to improve capacity in the NHS from having an
effect. It’s unacceptable that a lack of funding stops people from being moved into the social care system, even when there is space available. A failure to address social care remains a roadblock to meaningful improvements in the NHS. The real human cost of long waits and overcrowding is patients languishing in corridors, going into cardiac arrest, receiving intimate care, or being given end-of-life news in full view of others. Now more than ever, we need ministers to make good on delivering a national care service and to recognise how investing in the nursing workforce closer to peoples’ homes, like those in the community, can improve hospital performance.”
CSJ
To view the full report visit: https://www.
nao.org.uk/reports/managing-the-flow-of- patients-through-hospital-from-ae/
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Overcrowding in A&E leads to increased acts of violence
Overall, in the last 14 years, A&Es have become markedly more crowded with people waiting for care. In 2025-26, there were 28 million attendances at an A&E. This has increased since 2011-12, when there were 21.5 million A&E attendances. The Royal College of Emergency Medicine describes A&E crowding as the “greatest threat to the timely delivery of emergency care”. There are also high numbers of people waiting in corridors for care. Overcrowding in A&E is detrimental for patients and has a negative impact on staff, leading to A&E staff burnout. Long waits in A&E and corridor care are also linked to increased acts of violence against A&E staff.
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October 2026 I
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