Highest number of A&E patients waiting 12 hours or more since January – figures

The number of patients spending 12 hours or more in accident and emergency has reached the highest total since the end of January, new waiting times figures show.

The figures have been described as “atrocious” by the Scottish Tories.

Official data revealed that in the week ending April 7 a total of 1,723 people spent half a day or more waiting for help in A&E.

That is above the weekly average of 1,112 recorded during 2023, and is the highest total since the week ending January 28.

Public Health Scotland data showed that 62.1% of the  25,768 people who went to A&E in the first week of April were either admitted, transferred or discharged within fours hours.

That is down slightly from the 62.6% recorded the previous week, and continues to be well below the Scottish Government target of having 95% of patients admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours.

Over the week ending April 4, there were 9,756 patients who spent more than four hours in A&E, with this including 3,627 who were there for eight hours or more, as well as the 1,723 who waited 12 hours or more.

The Scottish Government said the long weekend at Easter had resulted in “increased numbers” of patients in A&E, as well as fewer patients being discharged from hospital and higher levels of staff absences.

With the government accepting “waiting times are longer than we want them to be for too many patients”, opposition politicians demanded action from Health Secretary Neil Gray

Scottish Conservative health spokesperson Dr Sandesh Gulhane said: “These atrocious figures show that Scotland’s A&E crisis is growing even deeper on the SNP’s watch.

“We are now well into spring, yet more and more patients are suffering potentially deadly delays due to the SNP’s inaction.”

Dr Gulhane, who is a GP as well as an MSP, insisted: “It is now the shocking norm that over a third of patients have to wait over four hours to be treated at A&E.

“These delays are what you’d expect at the height of winter, not in April.

“Neil Gray must urgently get a grip of this situation and he should start by adopting our bold plans to deliver a modern, efficient and local health service.”

Scottish Labour health spokesperson Dame Jackie Baillie said: “Every single week long A&E waits are putting lives in danger, but under the SNP things are getting worse instead of better.

“Neil Gray inherited a mess but, instead of getting things back on track, he allowed performance to plunge to levels not seen since the depths of winter.

“Years of SNP mismanagement have left patients in danger, staff exhausted and our NHS at breaking point.

“We urgently need a real plan to end this perpetual crisis in A&E, starting by supporting staff and tackling delayed discharge.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton commented: “Every week in our A&E departments thousands of people are waiting hours on end to get seen. It has been years since patients and staff experienced normal conditions.

“Normally at this time of year you would expect to see waiting times improve as we get past the busy winter period but, right now, it’s moving in the opposite direction.

“The SNP’s failure to help our NHS recover has left A&E in a state of perma-crisis.

“Patients and staff alike deserve better than this mismanagement. We need to finally see meaningful action taken to reverse this situation.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We know that the health service remains under sustained pressure and waiting times are longer than we want them to be for too many patients.

“Health boards have reported increased pressure on the system over the Easter period. The long weekend resulted in increased numbers of attendances to emergency departments, a general reduction in discharges and increased levels of staff absence due to annual leave and sickness.”

The spokesperson added: “We continue to work collaboratively with health boards to develop services, support sustained improvement and reduce A&E waiting times.

“The 2024-25 Scottish Budget provides over £19.5 billion for health and social care and an extra £500 million for frontline health boards.

“An initial investment of £30 million in the NHS, the first instalment of a £300 million investment over three years, will target reductions to pandemic backlogs and patients waiting the longest time.”