Dame Caroline Dinenage, MP for Gosport, has welcomed the government’s plan for tackling ambulance and A&E waiting times.
The government has announced measures to increase capacity, reduce pressure on services and to improve A&E services. This includes £1 billion for more beds and ambulances, expansion of new and innovative measures to treat patients in the community, and by sharing best practice.
This announcement comes days after Caroline met with the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Nurse at QA hospital to discuss their incredible efforts of virtually eliminating ambulance delays at A&E over the last few weeks.
Caroline Dinenage said of the announcement:
“The Prime Minister has rightly identified waiting times as a priority of the British people. I am glad to see that the government has outlined a plan to deliver on this promise.
“Increase capacity and discharge rates is key to combat long waiting periods for ambulances and A&E, so it is welcome that this is at the centre of the Health Secretary and Prime Minister’s plans.
“I recently met with the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Nurse at QA to hear about their progress in significantly reducing ambulance waiting times. I welcome that the Prime Minister’s plan will make it easier to share this knowledge, and to fund an increase in capacity.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said:
“Cutting NHS waiting times is one of my five priorities. Urgent and emergency care is facing serious challenges but we have an ambitious and credible plan to fix it.
“It will take time to get there but our plan will cut long waiting times by increasing the number of ambulances, staff and beds – stopping the bottlenecks outside A&E and making sure patients are seen and discharged quickly.
“If we meet this ambition, it will represent one of the fastest and longest sustained improvements in emergency waiting times in NHS history. I am determined to deliver this so that families across the country can get the care they need.”
Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said:
“Every day of every week, tens of thousands of people receive safe, high quality urgent and emergency care. However, with the NHS under unprecedented pressure from high covid and flu cases and the backlog from the pandemic, too many people are waiting too long in A&E or for ambulances.
“Today’s plan, which is backed by record investment, aims to rapidly cut waiting times, helping to deliver on one of the government’s five priorities, while giving patients the confidence that health and social care services will be there for them when they need them.
“Building on the extensive preparations the NHS put in place ahead of this winter, the plan will boost the number of hospital beds, get more ambulances on the road, grow and support the workforce, ensure people are able to leave hospital in a timely way when ready, and expand new services in the community so people can be treated closer to home.”
