Wes Streeting has made a commitment to put an end to the practice of treating patients in hospital corridors within the NHS in England before the upcoming general election or even earlier if possible.
This promise from the Health Secretary follows a warning from the Royal College of Nursing about the current “corridor care crisis” facing the NHS during the holiday season. Recent analysis by the nursing union has shown a significant surge in demand for hospital beds in England over the past six years, mainly due to a decline in community care services leading to more people seeking treatment in hospitals with limited bed availability.
While acknowledging that the Labour Party has initiated efforts to enhance community health services in England, the RCN emphasizes that the progress has not been rapid enough to match the escalating demand resulting from years of NHS funding constraints under the Conservative government.
Streeting, addressing the issue on LBC Radio, expressed his determination to eradicate corridor care in English hospitals by 2029, citing the unacceptable situation of patients being treated on trolleys in hospital corridors. He aims to achieve this goal during the current Parliament term and is open to achieving it sooner, stressing the necessity to avoid patients being left in such undignified conditions.
The Mirror previously reported that NHS England had quietly normalized corridor care starting in 2022 to address delays in ambulance response times. Recent data highlighted in an RCN report indicates a concerning rise in patients waiting over 12 hours for a bed in A&E, with a 90-fold increase in such instances between 2019 and 2025, despite only a marginal increase in hospital bed capacity.
Professor Nicola Ranger, the General Secretary of the RCN, expressed deep concerns about the upcoming winter months, foreseeing further challenges and risks for patients due to the prevalent corridor care situation. A detailed RCN report from last year underscored the severe impact of inadequate care spaces on patient safety and nursing staff well-being, with nurses recounting distressing experiences of patient neglect and lack of essential medical equipment.
The ongoing crisis in the NHS, exacerbated by years of underfunding and the pressures of the Covid-19 pandemic, has led to a surge in emergency care delays and the normalization of caring for patients in makeshift spaces like corridors. The RCN called for immediate action to eliminate corridor care, emphasizing the urgent need for transparency and collaboration with the government to address this critical issue effectively.