Rise in visits to A&E at Southport and Ormskirk Hospital

More patients visited A&E at Southport and Ormskirk Hospital last month, with demand rising above the levels seen over the same period last year.

NHS England figures show 10,659 patients visited A&E at Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust in October.

That was a rise of 6% on the 10,032 visits recorded during September, and 36% more than the 7,818 patients seen in October 2020.

The figures show attendances were above the levels seen before the coronavirus pandemic – in October 2019, there were 10,600 visits to A&E at Southport and Ormskirk Hospital.

The majority of attendances last month were via major A&E departments – those with full resuscitation equipment and 24-hour consultant-led care – while 23% were via minor injury units.

Across England, A&E departments received 2.2 million visits last month.

That was an increase of 2% compared to September, and 36% more than the 1.6 million seen during October 2020.

At Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust:

In October:

There were 158 booked appointments, up from 112 in September

77% of arrivals were seen within four hours, against an NHS target of 95%

821 patients waited longer than four hours for treatment following a decision to admit

Of those, 57 were delayed by more than 12 hours

Separate NHS Digital data reveals that in September:

The median time to treatment was 94 minutes

Around 6% of patients left before being treated