Emergency physician warns of ongoing crisis in UK emergency care
7 reported
A consultant emergency physician with more than 30 years of experience has described a crisis in UK emergency departments, stating that patients are dying on corridors with no privacy or dignity due to lack of space and hospital beds. The physician, Dr Carole Gavin of Manchester, wrote in a letter that despite advances in emergency medicine, basic humane emergency care is no longer being provided in England in 2026. She noted that the government appears to accept these deaths and points to fewer patients waiting more than four hours as a sign of improvement, but she argued that those are well patients who go home while seriously ill patients wait up to 48 hours for a bed. Dr Gavin stated that she and colleagues continue to witness avoidable deaths and that their protests have not been heeded. She called for significant investment, warning that if the government fails to act it will bear responsibility for further deaths.
What’s reported
Dr Carole Gavin is a consultant emergency physician in Manchester with over 30 years of experience.
She wrote that patients are dying on A&E corridors with no privacy or dignity due to lack of space and hospital beds.
She stated that many more patients die later as a consequence of prolonged emergency department stays.
She said that in England in 2026, basic humane emergency care is no longer being provided.
She reported that seriously ill patients wait up to 48 hours for admission to a bed, something unimaginable a few years ago.
She said the government points to fewer patients waiting more than four hours as a sign of improvement, but those are well patients who go home.
She called for significant investment and warned the government will bear responsibility for avoidable deaths if it fails to act.
Key figures
Dr Carole Gavin, consultant emergency physician, Manchester
Sources: The Guardian
