More patients visited A&E departments in north Cumbria hospitals last month, with demand rising above the levels seen over the same period last year.
NHS England figures show that in May, 9,939 patients visited A&E at the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle, the West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven and minor injury units, run by the North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust.
That was a rise of 12 per cent on the 8,838 visits recorded during April, and 67 per cent more than the 5,940 patients seen in May 2020.
The figures show attendances were below the levels seen before the coronavirus pandemic – in May 2019, there were 10,083 visits to the trust’s A&E departments.
The majority of attendances last month were via major A&E departments – those with full resuscitation equipment and 24-hour consultant-led care – while 15 per cent were via minor injury units.
Across England, A&E departments received 2.1 million visits last month.
That was an increase of 11 per cent compared to April, and 65 per cent more than the 1.3 million seen during May 2020 – a reflection of lower-than-usual numbers for that month as more people avoided hospitals during the early days of the pandemic.
At North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust in May:
- There were 284 booked appointments, up from 265 in April
- 82 per cent of arrivals were seen within four hours, against an NHS target of 95 per cent
- 302 patients waited longer than four hours for treatment following a decision to admit
- Of those, three were delayed by more than 12 hours
