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| NHS discharge delays hit record levels | NHS discharge delays hit record levels |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Vulnerable patients are getting stuck in hospital in England as delays discharging people hit record levels, figures show. | |
| There were more than 160,000 days lost to delays in October - up a third since 2010. | |
| Experts said the problems were being caused by a lack of community services to release patients into. | |
| The figures also showed many NHS targets - covering A&E units, cancer care and ambulances - were being missed. | |
| Leading research group, the Nuffield Trust, said the NHS faced a real struggle this winter unless it could urgently invested in extra beds in care homes and other community settings to relieve the pressure on hospitals. | |
| The NHS England October performance data showed: | |
| The position on many of the measures is worse than it was this time last year, which ended up being the most difficult winter for a generation. | The position on many of the measures is worse than it was this time last year, which ended up being the most difficult winter for a generation. |
| Hospitals in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also struggling with many of these measures - with the four-hour A&E target being missed across the board. | Hospitals in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are also struggling with many of these measures - with the four-hour A&E target being missed across the board. |
| The NHS in winter: Want to know more? | The NHS in winter: Want to know more? |
| Special report page: For the latest news, analysis and video | Special report page: For the latest news, analysis and video |
| Analysis: The lost beds problem | Analysis: The lost beds problem |
| Winter across the UK: A guide to how the NHS is coping | Winter across the UK: A guide to how the NHS is coping |
| Video: Why hospitals are under so much pressure | Video: Why hospitals are under so much pressure |
| Video: How a hospital can grind to a halt | Video: How a hospital can grind to a halt |
| The data has been released as the Nuffield Trust published its findings from a review of health service performance last year. | |
| The think tank found a small proportion of patients - just 3.6% - had taken up more than a third of hospital bed capacity. | |
| This was because they spent long periods in hospital or were readmitted on a regular basis. | This was because they spent long periods in hospital or were readmitted on a regular basis. |
| The research group said help targeted at this group - most of them frail and elderly - could have a big impact. | The research group said help targeted at this group - most of them frail and elderly - could have a big impact. |
| The report said investing in intermediate care beds could provide a solution - allowing hospitals to discharge the frailest patients into a safe environment until they have recovered or until care packages could be arranged in their own home, or permanent places found in care homes. | The report said investing in intermediate care beds could provide a solution - allowing hospitals to discharge the frailest patients into a safe environment until they have recovered or until care packages could be arranged in their own home, or permanent places found in care homes. |
| This has been done in Glasgow, where the local council and NHS have worked together over the past year to ensure care home beds have been freed up for hospital patients to move into temporarily. | This has been done in Glasgow, where the local council and NHS have worked together over the past year to ensure care home beds have been freed up for hospital patients to move into temporarily. |
| Nuffield Trust chief executive Nigel Edwards predicted that this winter hospitals were going to find it "even more difficult to cope" unless the health service invested in intermediate care beds to get patients out of hospital. | Nuffield Trust chief executive Nigel Edwards predicted that this winter hospitals were going to find it "even more difficult to cope" unless the health service invested in intermediate care beds to get patients out of hospital. |
| Rob Webster, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents hospitals, backed the findings. | Rob Webster, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents hospitals, backed the findings. |
| "Hospitals under pressure has become the status quo, and this winter is unlikely to be any different. | "Hospitals under pressure has become the status quo, and this winter is unlikely to be any different. |
| "The solution often clearly lies outside of the walls of our hospitals and into communities." | |
| Dr Barbara Hakin, of NHS England, said: "Our staff continue to provide quality services in the face of increasingly high levels of demand throughout the healthcare system." | |
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| Are you affected by the issues in this story? Share your experiences. You can email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. | Are you affected by the issues in this story? Share your experiences. You can email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk. |
| Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways: | Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also contact us in the following ways: |
| Or use the form below | Or use the form below |