Beggs hits out at latest “shocking” A&E Waiting Time statistics
The Ulster Unionist Party’s Health spokesperson Roy Beggs MLA has described the latest statistics to be released (for April) regarding Accident & Emergency waiting time statistics as “truly shocking”.
Mr Beggs said:
“According to Provisional Emergency Care Waiting Time Information for April 2013, the percentage of patients being seen within four hours at A&E departments were 62.8% at Antrim Area, 61.6% at Craigavon Area, 61.3% at the Ulster Hospital and 59.5% at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast. These are truly shocking statistics.
Only last week the BBC reported how the NHS in England and Wales was deemed to be in crisis due to the number of hospitals whose A&E departments were failing to meet the 95% target for seeing patients within four hours.
To put things in perspective, the statistics for last month show that in Northern Ireland only the South West Hospital managed to see more than 70 per cent of people in A&E within four hours.
Clearly there are major problems with our Accident & Emergency departments which are putting nurses and doctors under intolerable strain as they seek to provide emergency treatment to patients.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/emergency_care_waiting_times_april_2013_provisional.xlsx
http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/ec1_data_mar_13.xls
