Worst of winter not over as delayed discharges logjam and bugs keep NHS under huge strain

Latest NHS England figures show:

• 96% of adult hospital beds occupied
• More than 1 in 7 beds a day taken up by people who don’t need to stay in hospital
• Record number of patients in A&E waiting more than 12 hours to be seen and admitted
• Norovirus cases 62% higher than last year
• Record 18m treatments delivered in 2024

Saffron Cordery, interim chief executive, NHS Providers, said:

"It has been the toughest winter for the NHS that many trust leaders can remember, with weeks of incredibly high numbers of people in hospital.

"Serious bugs – with norovirus cases up by 62% on last year - have piled pressure on already stretched services.

"Wards are full of thousands of patients ready to be discharged but can’t be, often due to a lack of community NHS or social care capacity. Last week, one in seven beds were filled by these patients. This logjam has been a challenge for years, we need a long-term solution. It has a serious knock-on effect, with a record number of patients waiting to be admitted through A&E.

"But in the face of non-stop pressure the NHS is bringing down waiting lists and treating record numbers of people including more checks, tests and cancer results as trust leaders and staff continue to do all they can to see patients as quickly as possible.

"Almost three in four A&E patients were seen within four hours in January, better than the previous month, and ambulance response times have improved.

"But the relentless pressure can take a toll on hospital, mental health, community and ambulance service staff too. At the last count anxiety, stress, depression and other psychiatric illnesses were the most reported reason for sickness, accounting for more than a quarter (27%) of all staff sickness."