NHS Fife: Long waits as Kingdom's A&E waiting times hit an all time low

Figures released this week by Public Health Scotland (PHS) show just 48 per cent of people in Fife were seen and subsequently admitted, discharged or transferred within four hours in the week up to December 18.

This figure is the lowest recorded for NHS Fife since times began being recorded in 2015.

The Scottish Government aims to ensure this happens for 95% of people who attend A&E.

The health board’s previous low, recorded in the week up to July 17 this year, was recorded as 54.2 per cent.

The picture is similar in health boards across Scotland, with the national figure hitting another new low after a sharp spike in the number of people waiting more than 12 hours.

Across the country, just 55 per cent of people were seen and subsequently admitted, discharged or transferred within four hours, according to the latest figures.

The figures also showed an increase of 62 in the number of people waiting more than 12 hours in Fife’s emergency departments, rising to 100 during that time period compared to 38 the week before.

The number of people waiting more than eight hours also increased by 133 – from 143 to 276 – while those waiting more than four hours increased from 562 to 690.

The number of attendances at A&E in that week stayed roughly similar to the figures of recent months, rising from 1323 the week before to 1332.

Claire Dobson, NHS Fife’s director of acute services, said: “There are significant and unrelenting pressures across the whole of the health and care system in Fife at present, and the length of time it is taking for patients in our emergency department to be assessed, treated and either discharged or admitted to hospital is reflective of these unprecedented pressures.

“It remains the case that those who are most unwell are prioritised to be assessed very quickly on arrival at the Emergency Department – regrettably, that means patients whose condition is less serious are currently likely to wait longer.

"That does not mean that we are accepting of longer waiting times and our staff are working incredibly hard in hugely difficult circumstances, both to provide patients with good quality care and ensure they can be seen as quickly as possible.

“Importantly, those who require admission to hospital and are waiting within the Emergency Department are monitored appropriately and are cared for throughout.”