NHS boss demands action as A&E units miss waiting targets

Some patients are having to wait in ambulances instead of being treated because emergency departments are so overstretched.

Medics are supposed to see at least 98 per cent of people who are brought to A & E within four hours but London hospitals are breaching this time limit, which was set by g overnment because of a lack of beds and staff shortages.

The heads of all London primary care trusts were summoned to a summit yesterday by NHS London boss Ruth Carnall. In a leaked letter to PCT chief executives, seen by the Standard, she warned: "It is unacceptable for us to fail the 98 per cent standard and the Department of Health will be asking us for a recovery plan by the end of next week so ministers can be assured that this core requirement will be met.

"It is a major concern that this key indicator of the quality of our services is not resilient in the face of predictable pressures."

Each PCT must now submit an action plan which demonstrates how it is going to cut A&E waiting times.

Minutes from an NHS London board meeting reveal the delays are stopping ambulance crews meeting their target to respond to 75 per cent of urgent calls within eight minutes. In London, only 73.1 per cent are answered in that time.

The Government says pressure on A&E units will be eased as it shifts activity from hospitals to new "supersurgeries". Critics claim this is part of a move to downgrade A&E services across the capital.

The Conservatives were holding a Commons debate today on urgent care.

Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley was expected to criticise the NHS culture of form-filling and targets imposed from above.

He was to add: "Given that A&E services have been under real pressure this winter, it's astonishing that Labour are planning cuts and closures to A&E departments."