Hospital 'worst for 12-hour bed waits' apologises

The NHS trust which runs Blackpool Victoria Hospital has apologised to patients after a report revealed some newly-arrived patients were waiting 12-hours to get a bed on a ward, making it "the worst nationally".

It comes after BBC analysis found 1.75 million patients waited that long last year to be treated and discharged or found a bed on a ward.

Like many others nationally, Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has been under intense pressure due to high demand over winter and gaps in critical staffing.

Chief executive Maggie Oldham said: "I'd like to apologise and offer reassurance that while patients are waiting for a bed, they are being reviewed, assessed and support by colleagues."

Last month the trust made a desperate plea to the public not to attend A&E for minor health issues like sore throats and sinusitis, as pressure on beds mounted.

And earlier in January a critical incident was declared at Blackpool Victoria due to "a very high demand for services" bringing "sustained pressure", particularly in the Emergency Department.

A critical incident in a hospital is a severe situation where resources are overwhelmed, jeopardising safe patient care due to extreme demand, such as flu surges, winter pressures or other major disruptions - forcing contingency plans into place.

A report to this week's meeting of Blackpool Council's adult social care and scrutiny committee highlighted the issues the Trust was facing, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

However, the report also highlighted the efforts the trust was making to actively deal with the various issues, including increasing the capacity of its discharge lounge.

Oldham added: "High demand has been seen across all NHS services in recent years and Blackpool is no exception.

"We know this can impact on the experience of patients and we are working hard to make improvements to reduce waiting times.

"This report highlights a number of areas where important work is taking place and progress is being made, from recently increasing the capacity of our discharge lounge so patients can comfortably wait to go home without needing a hospital bed, to strengthening our workforce where we have gaps in key areas."

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