NHS: A&E waiting times linked to 23,000 excess deaths in 2022 according to Royal College of Emergency Medicine

Analysis by the college found that in 2022, 1.66 million people were left waiting for more than 12 hours in A&E from the moment they walked in. After putting in a Freedom of Information request to the NHS, RCEM found 1,656,296 patients waited in A&E for over 12 hours then worked out the mortality rates linked to long waits.

A mortality ratio looks at whether a specific population is more, less, or just as likely to die compared to the general population. Using data from a 2021 medicine journal study, RCEM concluded there was one extra death for every 72 patients that spent eight to 12 hours in A&E.