Figures from the Department of Health have revealed that patients in Derry had to wait almost 20 hours to be admitted to Altnagelvin Hospital last month.
The new data shows time spent in emergency departments (ED) throughout the North of Ireland during the months of October, November and December 2022 compared to the previous year.
During December the median waiting time from triage to the start of treatment by a medical professional was 1 hour 25 minutes, with 95 percent of patients receiving treatment within 7 hours of being triaged.
The median time patients discharged home (not admitted) spent in a Type 1 ED (24 hour access) was 4 hours 8 minutes in December – 33 minutes more than the time taken during the same month last year.
For patients who were admitted to hospital, the median time spent in a Type 1 ED was 14 hours 9 minutes in December 2022, 3 hours 14 minutes more than the same month last year.
During December, Altnagelvin Hospital reported the longest median time spent in ED from arrival to admission (19 hours 58 minutes), whilst the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children reported the shortest time (5 hours 56 minutes).
The latest report includes information on two new urgent care services, namely PhoneFirst and Urgent Care Centres.
They were introduced in late 2020, to assess patients’ needs before arrival at an ED, and ensure they receive the right care, at the right time, and in the right place, outside ED if appropriate.
These new services may in part help explain the reduction in the number of patients attending EDs.
In December 2022, 12,366 calls were received by PhoneFirst and Urgent Care Centre services, from patients who may previously have attended an ED.
Over 62,000 people attended the North’s emergency departments last month.
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