A recent nurses’ report has revealed a concerning deterioration in NHS corridor care, describing treatment on hospital wards as akin to “torture.” The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) gathered feedback from 436 nurses, who shared distressing incidents such as a patient being left in a chair for four days and another tragically dying unnoticed in a corridor after choking. The situation has escalated to the extent that multiple hospitals in England have declared critical incidents due to a lack of space in emergency departments and available beds, with one facility even repurposing a dining room.
According to the RCN, corridor care has now become a distressing norm in NHS hospitals, where nursing staff are forced to provide care in unsuitable areas like freezing corridors, dining rooms, staff kitchens, offices, and departure lounges. Nurses have resorted to using white sheets to preserve patient dignity during intimate procedures, and in some instances, patients have had to eat next to individuals vomiting due to overcrowding.
RCN General Secretary Professor Nicola Ranger emphasized the impossibility of delivering safe and dignified care in such inadequate settings, decrying the normalization of substandard care delivery in corridors and non-clinical spaces. Testimonies from nurses across different regions of England painted a grim picture of elderly patients spending excessive time in corridors, leading to health complications and even fatalities.
Despite the RCN’s previous revelations about the dire state of corridor care in NHS hospitals, a revisit to the situation through a sample survey of 5,000 nurses was conducted. The feedback highlighted ongoing challenges and personal struggles faced by healthcare workers, including witnessing patients deteriorate in unideal settings and enduring high levels of stress and anxiety.
Recent YouGov polling indicated that a significant portion of Brits who accessed NHS care in the past six months witnessed care being administered in corridors or inappropriate spaces. Health Secretary Wes Streeting has committed to eradicating corridor care by the end of the current parliament, but public sentiment shows a desire for quicker action.
The RCN is urging the government to invest in additional beds, nursing staff, community services, and social care to address the systemic issues contributing to the prevalence of corridor care. In response, the Department of Health and Social Care acknowledged the urgent need for improvement, highlighting immediate steps taken to enhance urgent and emergency care services, expand vaccination programs, and invest in new healthcare facilities.
Efforts are underway to collaborate with NHS trusts to standardize care delivery, improve data collection, reduce discharge delays, and enhance coordination with social care services. Despite these initiatives, the pressing need to eliminate corridor care and provide adequate healthcare facilities remains a top priority for healthcare stakeholders and policymakers.