A&E patients waited more than half an hour before entering Great Western Hospital after arriving in ambulances, new figures reveal. Health think tank the Nuffield Trust said the NHS was under enormous pressure, with the queues of ambulances seen across England in recent weeks likely caused by a surge in coronavirus cases and reduced capacity. NHS England figures show 467 patients arrived at A&E at GWH by ambulance between December 21 and 27. A total of 53 people had to wait between 30 and 60 minutes – and 28 had to wait even longer. National guidance says patients arriving at an emergency department by ambulance must be handed over to the care of A&E staff within 15 minutes.
One new coronavirus death has been recorded at Great Western Hospitals Trust in the latest 24-hour period, the latest official figures show. NHS England figures show 175 people had died in hospital at Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust as of 5pm on Tuesday (December 29). That was an increase of one compared to Monday, when there were 174. It means there have been five deaths in the past week, up from two the previous week. The victims were among 2,295 deaths recorded across the South West. Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death.