‘Corridor care’ has become an endemic problem in Wales, survey finds

Every emergency department in Wales is caring for patients in corridors, with the problem having become “endemic”, the Royal College of Emergency Medicine has said.

The College, which represents emergency clinicians across Wales and the rest of the UK, has called on the Welsh government to prevent corridor care, branding it “dangerous, degrading, dehumanising”.

A snapshot survey carried out on three days over January and February revealed that all 12 Welsh emergency departments had people being treated in corridors or waiting areas.

The results, published on Monday, also show that on at least one of the three sample days, all had patients being cared for in the back of ambulances.

A Welsh government spokesman said they do not endorse routine care of people in “non-clinical or unsuitable environments” but there are occasions where the NHS “faces exceptional pressures”.

Dr Rob Perry, RCEM vice president of Wales, said: “Recently the Welsh Government said that compromising the quality of care, privacy, or dignity of patients only happens on ‘occasions when the NHS faces exceptional pressure’.

“Well, our research clearly shows that exceptional pressure is now the everyday norm in Wales’ Emergency Departments (EDs).

“And this must not be dismissed as just being down to but the annual seasonal upsurge. I am confident the results would be similar whichever time of the year we undertook this survey.

“These findings should shock and shame the Government into action.

“So-called ‘corridor care’ is dangerous, degrading, dehumanising and it is now endemic here in Wales.

“Addressing it and its causes must be a political priority, and it must act now.”

The results revealed that:

– Twelve out of 12 Welsh EDs had patients being treated in corridors.

– Of the average total of 619 patients present in EDs at the time, 13.5% were being treated on trolleys in corridors and other inappropriate spaces.

– A further 10.7% of patients in waiting areas were deemed as needing a clinical space.

– Some 43.9% (272) of all patients were waiting for an inpatient bed.

– Every ED’s cubicles were full, with the average cubicle occupancy being 176%. The highest being 278% in one department where there were 75 patients and just 27 cubicles.

The survey results have been released following the monthly ED performance data for Wales.

That data shows 57,970 people attended major EDs in Wales in February – 6.2% lower than January 2025 (61,782).

Of those, just 56.1% of patients in major EDs were admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours from arrival and more than one in seven patients (8,942) were delayed by 12 hours or more.

When it comes to in-patients, there was a daily average of almost 1,500 people who experienced a delay of more than 48 hours from the point when they were deemed medically well enough to leave hospital.

Dr Perry added: “It is clear from this monthly data that although there has been a small drop in the number of attendances the fundamental issue of moving people from the ED into the hospital and home again when well enough persists.

“Almost half those who visited a Welsh ED last month faced a wait of more than four hours – and thousands more were there at least 12 hours.

“Long waits, crowding, so-called corridor care – it is all unacceptable. Our members and our patients deserve so much better.”

In January, a Welsh Coroner criticised the “normalisation of corridor care” in a prevention of future death report issued to the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board.

A spokesman for the Welsh Government said: “We do not endorse the routine care or treatment of individuals in non-clinical or unsuitable environments, nor any situations where the quality of care, privacy, or dignity of patients is compromised.

“However, there are occasions when the NHS faces exceptional pressures, such as during periods of increased demand or public health emergencies.

“These pressures are not unique to Wales. We have provided more than £200m in additional funding this year to support health and care services to safely manage more people at home and improve timeliness of discharge from hospital which is essential to help address these challenges.”