The Royal College of Emergency Medicine has revealed deaths associated with long A&E waits have increased by a third between 2022 and 2023.

Ahead of launching its election manifesto in Edinburgh today, the College says the more than 800 deaths associated with long A&E waits before admission last year point to an unsustainable crisis in NHS Scotland’s emergency care.

Representing 16 lives lost every week, for the College is calling on Scotland’s politicians to commit to prioritising A&E improvements ahead of the 2026 elections.

The figures come from an analysis that will form part of a presentation to clinicians, healthcare leaders, policymakers and politicians in Edinburgh today.

Royal College of Emergency Medicine Scotland (RCEM) Vice President Dr Fiona Hunter says RCEM’s report reflects a “national tragedy”:

“Behind this statistic are stories of heartbreak. Because these are people. Mums, dads, brothers, sisters, grandparents - their deaths shattering the lives of families and friends. These are patients who are sick and need further care on a ward.

“So they are forced to endure extreme wait times for an inpatient bed to become available for them.

“Often, they will be experiencing this, counting the hours they have been in ED, on a trolley in a corridor, cupboard, or simply any available floor space.”

RCEM says this comes after a summer of ‘unrelenting pressure’ on A&Es, with an unacceptable number of people enduring long and dangerous waits.

Over the warmer months of June and July this year, 1 in 24 people (9,881) endured a stay of 12 hours or more from their time of arrival at an emergency department in Scotland.

Meanwhile, further analysis of 2024 reveals a record 76,510 patients waited 12 hours or more to be admitted, discharged or transferred from A&E.

That’s 20,432 more people who endured an extreme wait compared to 2023.

However, Dr Hunter says this is a “fixable” crisis, and looking to properly staffing wards and addressing patient flow across Scotland’s hospitals:

“It doesn’t have to be this way – the crisis is fixable, and it comes down to patient flow in hospitals - getting people out of ED and into a ward bed and getting them out of hospital when they are well enough to go home.

“We urge all political parties to adopt the recommendations in our manifesto to give Scotland an Emergency Care system that we can be proud of once again.

“Because without government action, the cost will continue to be measured in lives.”

The manifesto to be unveiled in Edinburgh today urges all political parties to end overcrowding and increase staffing across Scotland’s emergency departments to deliver safe and sustainable care.

It also calls on Scotland’s leaders to ensure equitable care is provided throughout the A&E system by resourcing NHS Scotland with the beds and tools required to meet patient need.

If the Scottish government does not address these foundational areas, Dr Hunter says, it will be patients who suffer:

“If they don’t act, our Urgent and Emergency Care workforce will continue to be pushed beyond their limits, and patients will ultimately bear the brunt.”

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