Rise in visits to A&E at the Sussex University Hospitals Trust

More patients visited A&E at the Sussex University Hospitals Trust last month, with demand rising above the levels seen over the same period last year.

NHS England figures show 30,185 patients visited A&E at University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust in March.

That was a rise of 17% on the 25,788 visits recorded during February, and 20% more than the 25,154 patients seen by the trust's two predecessors in March 2021.

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.

Meanwhile, around 5% were via consultant-led departments with single specialties, such as eye conditions or dental problems.

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

That was an increase of 19% compared to February, and 29% more than the 1.7 million seen during March 2021.

At University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust:

In March:

There were 2,073 booked appointments, up from 2,013 in February

55% of arrivals were seen within four hours, against an NHS target of 95%

2,674 patients waited longer than four hours for treatment following a decision to admit – 9% of patients

Of those, 772 were delayed by more than 12 hours

Separate NHS Digital data reveals that in February:

The median time to treatment was 103 minutes. The median average is used to ensure figures are not skewed by particularly long or short waiting times

Around 6% of patients left before being treated