Almost 500 patients taken by ambulance to Wigan Infirmary in just one week

Hundreds of people were taken by ambulance to Wigan Infirmary last week.
Wigan InfirmaryWigan Infirmary
Wigan Infirmary

Just under 500 patients - were taken by paramedics to A&E at Wigan Infirmary, the busiest day being Sunday, when 82 patients arrived.

Over the week, 146 arrivals waited 30 minutes or more to be transferred to the emergency department – despite NHS guidelines saying all patients should be transferred within 15 minutes.

Of these, 51 patients waited an hour or longer.

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The number of people arriving by ambulance last week was an increase on the previous seven days, when 468 were recorded.

General and acute wards at the trust were 97 per cent full on average last week – significantly above the 85 per cent rate the British Medical Association suggests should not be exceeded to ensure safe patient care, however, the occupancy rate was lower than the 98.1 per cent recorded the previous week.

On average, the trust had 445 beds available to use each day last week, including 13 escalation beds, which are used in emergencies and periods of high demand.

Just 13 beds were free on an average day.

As part of the NHS Long Term Plan, hospital staff are being encouraged to reduce lengthy hospital stays for patients recovering from an operation or illness.

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NHS England says the move is aimed at improving care options and freeing up 7,000 beds nationally – the equivalent of 15 large hospitals.

On Sunday, 171 patients had been in hospital for seven days or more, accounting for 41 per cent of all beds occupied.

Occupying 13 per cent of beds, 54 patients had been in hospital for three weeks or longer.

Commenting on the situation across the country’s hospitals, an NHS spokesperson said: “The advice continues to be that the public can help themselves and the NHS by using the free

NHS 111 phone or online service to get fast advice on symptoms and how best to look after themselves and their loved ones.”

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