Rise in visits to A&E at Imperial College Healthcare

More patients visited A&E at Imperial College Healthcare last month, with demand rising above the levels seen over the same period last year.

NHS England figures show 23,859 patients visited A&E at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in June.

That was a rise of 2% on the 23,408 visits recorded during May, and 3% more than the 23,059 patients seen in June 2022.

The figures show attendances were in line with the levels seen two years ago – in June 2021, there were 23,795 visits to A&E departments run by Imperial College Healthcare.

Most attendances last month were via major A&E departments – those with full resuscitation equipment and 24-hour consultant-led care – while 31% were via minor injury units.

Meanwhile, around 17% were via consultant-led departments with single specialities, such as eye conditions or dental problems.

Across England, A&E departments received 2.2 million visits last month – down a bit from May, but slightly above the number of visits seen in June 2022.

The number of people waiting more than 12 hours in A&E departments in England from a decision to admit to actually being admitted was 26,531 in June, down 16% from 31,494 in May. The figure hit a record 54,573 in December 2022.

It comes as junior doctors have begun their five-day walk out in what is the longest spell of industrial action in the history.

Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, said: "Every new month brings more evidence of record demand across many areas of NHS care with staff experiencing the busiest June ever for A&E attendances, no doubt exacerbated by the record high temperatures experienced for that month.

"This ongoing pressure on services is precisely why it is so important to highlight that staff continue to make progress in reducing the longest waits for care despite strikes, high demand, and bank holiday weekends."

At Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust:

In June:

• 76% of arrivals were seen within four hours, against an NHS target of 95%

• 1,027 patients waited longer than four hours for treatment following a decision to admit – 4% of all arrivals

• Of those, 49 were delayed by more than 12 hours