Hospitals in England admitting record number of emergency patients

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/dec/19/hospitals-england-record-number-emergency-patients

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Hospitals are admitting the highest number of emergency patients since records began, according to NHS England.

There were a record 111,062 emergency admissions last week.

Dr Barbara Hakin, national director of commissioning operations for NHS England, said: “Pressures on our A&E services continue to increase significantly.

“We have admitted more people to hospital this week (ending 14 December) to take care of them than in any previous week on record. I want to pay tribute to the staff dealing with that - they are doing a brilliant job.

“While we are now below the extremely high waiting time standards that we set ourselves, the service we provide remains robust.”

Records for emergency admissions have been held for more than a decade.

There were also 440,428 patients attending A&E, which was up more than 24,000 on the same week last year.

Hakin said: “The NHS’s waiting times for urgent treatment are among the best for any major country that measures them.

“Looking ahead, we need to transform the NHS so it is better able to cope with demand, as set out in the NHS Five Year Forward View. We have today set out how we plan to drive this forward next year, allocating additional NHS funding to every part of the country.

“As we come into the holiday period, it is important people continue to look after themselves and nip problems in the bud.

“They should ensure they have proper medication, get their flu jab if they have not done so, and get advice from their pharmacist.”