Statistics from NHS England, on 6 January, revealed that in the three months to the end of 2014, 92.6% of patients were seen within four hours, just short of the 95% target. The performance is the worst quarterly result since the target was introduced at the end of 2004.
“There is no doubt urgent and emergency care is under significant pressure, but we cannot look at A&E in isolation," the NHS Confederation's chief executive, Rob Webster, commented. “Pressures on A&E are symptomatic of pressures across the whole healthcare system, including pressures in the community, general practice and underfunded social care."
