Senedd members urged the Welsh Government to put an end to the “undignified and disrespectful” practice of corridor care in Welsh hospitals.
James Evans, the Conservatives’ shadow health secretary, warned corridor care has become the norm and the crisis can no longer be ignored.
He said: “A crisis where patients – mothers, fathers, grandparents – are left waiting in chairs for hours and sometimes days waiting for a bed.
“A crisis where ambulance crews spend hours parked outside hospitals and when they get inside they’re left waiting in corridors.
“A crisis where doctors and nurses, despite their dedication and tireless efforts, are being pushed beyond breaking point, describing their workplaces as war zones with patients placed everywhere. This is a national disgrace.”
‘Never event’
Leading a Tory debate on February 19, Mr Evans raised a report by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) which warned corridor care is putting patients at risk in every part of Wales.
He told the Senedd: “If we’re serious about ending corridor care, we must also free up hospital capacity. We must pause the reduction in hospital beds and conduct a national review of NHS capacity.”
Mr Evans, who represents Brecon and Radnorshire, expressed concerns about social care being underfunded, understaffed and unable to take patients ready to leave hospital.
Urging ministers to accept the report’s recommendations, he highlighted the RCN’s calls for more clinical decision makers on weekends, district nurses and community care teams.
He said: “Corridor care should never be allowed to happen and we must never, ever tolerate it. This means making it a never event, something so unacceptable it must never happen.”
‘Totally undignified’
His Plaid Cymru counterpart Mabon ap Gwynfor described the RCN report as painting a bleak picture of a health service that puts patients and staff at risk.
“The report reinforces what we have heard,” he said. “With heart-rending examples of patients dying in their chairs in a hospital corridor while waiting for treatment.
“It’s a totally undignified and disrespectful way of treating our loved ones, and the [Welsh] Government must ensure that this practice comes to an end.”
Labour’s Carolyn Thomas pointed to the impact of 14 years of austerity, with cuts shared between social care and the health service.
The Conservatives’ Altaf Hussain said a 73-year-old constituent spent Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day being treated in the waiting room at Morriston Hospital.
‘Treated in a cupboard’
Dr Hussain, a former surgeon, told the Senedd: “Emergency departments are working far above staffing guidelines that the Royal College of Emergency Medicine suggests.
“Staff are completely burnt out; they dread coming into work and many feel extremely anxious before their shifts. Many staff cry regularly on shift…. If nurses are telling us the situation is dire, we should listen and act.”
His Tory colleague Janet-Finch Saunders said more than 6,500 ambulances spent at least an hour outside a Welsh A&E waiting to offload patients in December alone.
She said: “Nursing staff describe patients treated in chairs for over 24 hours – 48 hours I’ve witnessed – forced into hallways or in front of fire exits due to a lack of available beds.
“I know of one constituent only recently, I saw them being treated in a cupboard.”
‘Huge pressure’
Health secretary Jeremy Miles stated the Welsh Government will focus on strengthening the whole health and care system, not only hospitals.
He said: “I don’t believe that it is acceptable to provide care or treatment in areas that are not clinical settings, or areas that are inappropriate. But this is happening because the health service here and across the UK is under huge pressure.”
Mr Miles added: “Our district and community nursing teams play a vital role in delivering high-quality care closer to home, preventing unnecessary hospital admissions….
“We are committed to expanding and investing in this part of the nursing workforce to meet the needs of our population and to improve outcomes.”
Senedd members voted 26-24 against the motion. The Welsh Government’s amendment, to note the report rather than commit to its recommendations, was agreed by the same margin.