NHS Data Shows 2,910 Patients Daily Received Corridor Care Across England Last Month
New data indicates that an average of 2,910 patients daily were subjected to 'corridor care' in English hospitals throughout May. This encompasses 2,241 patients per day in Accident & Emergency (A&E) departments and an additional 669 patients awaiting beds on wards.
Corridor care is defined as patients waiting over 45 minutes for an appropriate care location. In A&E, this can mean patients are in corridors or side-rooms lacking proper equipment for safety and dignity. On wards, it refers to patients waiting for a bed for 45 minutes or more.
Health Secretary James Murray stated that corridor care is "unacceptable, undignified and has no place in our NHS." He added that the new data aims to pinpoint areas of greatest concern, noting that "the vast majority of corridor care concentrated in a small number of organisations." Analysis by the NHS found that 20 trusts accounted for over half of A&E corridor care cases, with another 20 trusts responsible for more than two-thirds of instances elsewhere in hospitals.
Accounts from patients and staff underscore the severity of the issue. One woman described her elderly mother enduring over 24-hour waits in an A&E corridor on five separate occasions this year, relying on family presence for basic care. Another patient, diagnosed with a brain tumour after a 36-hour wait in a hospital chair, described the experience as "horrendous."
Nurses, speaking anonymously, reported chronic burnout and distressing conditions. One recounted a shift where a patient died unnoticed in a corridor, later found stiffened, highlighting a profound lack of dignity and care within these environments.
