Prolonged hot weather saw the highest ever number of attendances at hospital accident and emergency departments across Wales in June. The Welsh Ambulance Service also received more than 400 additional emergency calls every day in June, the Welsh NHS Confederation said. Throughout the month ambulances responded to more than 24,900 calls, including 990 purple calls for the most serious cardiac arrest and respiratory cases.
Heat-related issues increase pressure on services
The scorching weather led to more people turning up at A&E with heat-related issues, heaping further pressure on services, the Welsh Government said. Medics warned that hotter weather can contribute to incidents such as falls through dehydration, dizziness, low blood pressure, fatigue and reduced mobility. In June there were just over 98,700 attendances to all emergency departments across Wales, an average of 3,292 every day and 129 more on average than in the previous month. Just over 14,400 patients were admitted to hospital after going to A&E, 0.9% lower than in May.
Waiting times continue to rise
The figures were revealed in the latest waiting times data released on Thursday July 23 which also showed the longest waiting times are up again. The number of patient pathways waiting two years or more for consultant-led hospital treatment rose from 3,694 in April to 4,208 in May in Wales. The number of patient pathways waiting over a year in May saw a slight increase to 97,590, up from 96,409 the previous month. In total, there were 689,721 referral-to-treatment patient pathways waiting for treatment, increasing from 680,003 the previous month. Patient pathways are not the same as the number of patients waiting as some may be waiting for more than one treatment.
Government and NHS respond to pressures
Responding to the data health minister Mabon ap Gwynfor said the rise in waiting times was unacceptable. He promised the government would also work to help the NHS respond to pressure caused by heatwaves: "Sustained year-round preparedness is vital to anticipate seasonal risks such as heatwaves, and this government will work closely with our partners to deliver it consistently." Assistant director of the Welsh NHS Confederation Nesta Lloyd-Jones said the effects of the recent hot weather are "a stark warning" and called for improved ventilation and air conditioning in hospitals and other NHS buildings. "Recent periods of prolonged, extreme heat should serve as a stark warning of the challenges the NHS now faces throughout the year, not just during the winter months," Ms Lloyd-Jones said. "Sustained hot weather, coupled with pressures such as wildfires, places additional strain on frontline services and increases risks for patients, staff and the wider health and care system. Targeted investment in measures such as improved ventilation and air conditioning in the NHS estate, alongside additional capacity, would help make the NHS and key partners such as local government, more resilient to increasingly frequent extreme weather events."
Minister blames previous administration, promises action
Promising action to get waiting times down the Plaid Cymru minister blamed the previous Labour administration. "Today's statistics are disappointing and unacceptable. Too many people are waiting for treatment, and they are waiting too long. We have a plan to tackle this which will deliver the real change the people of Wales need to see and that they rightly deserve. We're doing things differently to previous approaches. Through our clinically-led surgical hub programme we will strengthen local capacity, get patients treated quicker and ensure that elective care demand is managed more sustainably within day-to-day NHS activity. We are committed to delivering our investment to support waiting list reductions this year."
Surgeons call for cross-party agreement on funding
Surgeons called on all political parties to work together to reach an agreement over health service funding saying the latest figures underline the need for more surgical capacity in Wales. "The continuing rise comes as the Welsh Government's first supplementary budget included an additional £100m for waiting list reductions, alongside £25m in capital expenditure for surgical and diagnostic hubs. However, the supplementary budget has not yet been approved by the Senedd, so uncertainty remains over when these additional resources may become available," the Royal College of Surgeons said. Professor Jon Barry, Director in Wales at the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England), said that staff are working tirelessly to reduce waiting lists, but lasting improvement requires "certainty over resources and expanded surgical capacity". "Behind every waiting list statistic is a patient whose life remains on hold while they wait for treatment. We urge all parties to work together to secure the resources our health service needs and help more patients get the care they have been waiting for," he added.
Ambulance service meets target for most serious calls
In better news the response time target for the ambulance service to respond to patients in the purple category - those experiencing a cardiac or respiratory arrest who need an ambulance immediately - has been met consistently for the past 12 months, the latest data shows.
