Elderly individuals frequently encounter extended waits of 12 hours or more in hospital emergency corridors, according to recent data.
Research conducted by the Nuffield Trust think tank reveals that 43% of individuals over 80 years old experienced waits exceeding 12 hours between arriving in the emergency department and being admitted to a hospital ward in 2025. In comparison, only 19% of those aged 21 to 30 faced similar delays.
Sarah Scobie, the research director at Nuffield Trust, expressed dismay over the situation, stating that it is alarming to see that a significant portion of elderly patients in emergency care endure lengthy waits in unsafe conditions despite being already frail and vulnerable. She emphasized that the prevalence of such incidents has increased post-pandemic and has led to numerous avoidable deaths. Each case of prolonged emergency care waiting represents an individual undergoing a distressing and traumatic ordeal.
Despite previous assumptions that frail adults spend more time in the emergency department due to increased admission rates, the analysis indicates that elderly patients still endure the lengthiest wait times for hospital beds. The complexity of multiple health conditions among the elderly contributes to prolonged diagnostic processes.
Many elderly individuals endure arduous delays in waiting rooms or on trolleys in corridors and makeshift areas, lacking access to proper food and rest. The government has initiated the publication of statistics on these corridor care waits.
Dr. Ian Higginson, the president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, highlighted the detrimental impact of extended stays in emergency care settings, leading to the loss of thousands of lives annually. He criticized the inadequacy of government strategies in addressing this crisis and emphasized the persistent need for emergency care services despite efforts to divert patients elsewhere.
The issue of “corridor care” quietly introduced across NHS facilities since 2022 allows ambulances to offload patients waiting outside, contributing to the growing numbers of individuals receiving care in inappropriate settings. Nearly 3,000 patients in England received care in corridors or makeshift treatment areas in May alone.
Dr. Den Langhor, the lead of the British Medical Association’s emergency medicine consultants committee, acknowledged the progress made in acknowledging and defining the corridor care crisis but stressed the insufficiency of current measures, particularly in distinguishing between short and prolonged periods of corridor care.
Despite ongoing challenges, recent data indicates a slight improvement in A&E waiting times in England, with 75.4% of patients seen within four hours, compared to previous years. The Department of Health and Social Care aims to address these issues by investing £450 million in urgent and emergency care plans to enhance bed capacity, expand care beyond hospital settings, and reduce A&E wait times.
Efforts to achieve optimal NHS waiting times are contingent on strengthening the social care system, as highlighted by the Prime Minister’s commitment to social care reform to provide individuals with the dignity, support, and security they deserve.
