Press release: £500 million to relieve pressures on A&E Department of Health
A&E departments will benefit from an additional £500 million over the next two years to ensure they are fully prepared for winter, Prime Minister David Cameron announced today.
A&E departments will benefit from an additional £500 million over the next two years to ensure they are fully prepared for winter, Prime Minister David Cameron announced today.
With over one million more people visiting A&E compared to three years ago, last year’s harsh winter put exceptional pressure on urgent and emergency wards.
The new funding will go to A&E departments identified as being under the most pressure and be targeted at ‘pinch points’ in local services.
Hospitals have put forward proposals aimed at improving how their services work. These include improvements to both A&E and improvements to other services away from A&E so there are less unnecessary visits or longer stays in urgent and emergency wards.
The aim will be for patients to be treated promptly, with fewer delays in A&E, and for other patients to get the care, prescriptions or advice they need without going to A&E.
