Bristol hospitals are ranked fifth worst in the country for bed blocking

The NHS is in the midst of a bed-blocking crisis, with more than half of England’s available hospital beds out of action due to delayed discharges. The Bristol region is among the highest in the country when it comes to the problem of medically fit patients occupying beds.

An average of 12,772 patients a day were stuck in hospital in England in April despite being declared medically fit by doctors. This means that over half (53.81%) of patients who no longer meet the criteria to live are blocking beds because they cannot leave.

Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board (ICB) was ranked as having the fifth highest proportion of resident patients not meeting the criteria at 60.69%. Birmingham and Solihull ICB has the highest percentage of patients blocking beds at 81%.

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The main reasons for delays locally were found to be long waiting times for referrals and a lack of available beds in nursing homes and community hospitals. Data from NHS England shows that the number of hospital beds in England has halved over the past 30 years – from an average of 300,000 in 1987 to just over 138,000 beds in 2022.

The Health Foundation’s analysis shows that increasing pressures on social care are contributing to delays, alongside wider pressures on the health and care system. According to the foundation patients who stay in hospital when they are ready to be discharged are “at greater risk of hospital-acquired infections and loss of mobility and independence”.

The latest statistics provided by Patient Claim Line (week commencing 22 April) show that 108,638 patients in England had more than 21 extra bed days. In accordance with The King’s Fund the direct cost of delayed discharges is £395 per night, making these extra days cost the NHS over £858 million.

Commenting on the findings, Jennifer Argent, attorney at Patient claim line said: “It is disappointing to see a significant number of patients occupying beds who do not meet the criteria to live in hospitals. This not only affects the number of beds available for patient care, but has the potential to cause distress to patients who experience unnecessarily long hospital stays.”

In January 2023, the Department of Health and Social Care announced that more than £250m would be set aside for an extra 900 beds. Professor Philip Banfield, chair of the BMA board, described the move as “too little, too late”, falling well short of the 10,000 extra beds recommended by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine and will not reduce expectations without action to to solve the problem. the staffing crisis in the NHS.

Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire ICB have been contacted for comment.