According to new figures from NHS England, 2024 was the busiest year on record for A&E and ambulance services, as flu and other respiratory viruses continue to strain hospitals into the new year.
New figures reveal that last week saw an average of 5,408 flu patients in hospital each day, with 256 in critical care—a staggering 3.5 times higher than the same week last year. Several trusts have declared critical incidents due to the exceptional demand driven by colder weather and a surge in respiratory viruses.
COVID-19, RSV, and norovirus cases also remain high, with over 1,100 COVID-19 patients and 626 norovirus patients hospitalised daily. There was also a notable rise in paediatric RSV cases, with an average of 72 children in hospital daily, up 47% from last year.
Commenting on the figures, NHS National Medical Director Professor Sir Stephen Powis said:
“It is clear that hospitals are under exceptional pressure at the start of this new year, with mammoth demand stemming from this ongoing cold weather snap and respiratory viruses like flu – all on the back of 2024 being the busiest year on record for A&E and ambulance teams.
“I never fail to be impressed by the remarkable job that NHS staff across a range of services in the face of current challenges, remaining compassionate, professional and doing everything they can to see patients as quickly as possible while often working in hospitals that are full to bursting. It is hard to quantify just through the data how tough it is for frontline staff at the moment – with some staff working in A&E saying that their days at work feel like some of the days we had during the height of the pandemic.
“That hard work and resilience from staff, alongside vital tools like surgical hubs and community diagnostic centres that keep planned care isolated from winter pressure, meant the waiting list fell again in November to 7.48 million, with the NHS delivering 5% more activity than the same period pre-pandemic.”
To tackle this anticipated surge, the NHS increased the number of general and acute beds to 102,546, up from the previous week's 101,309. NHS teams have administered a total of 29 million flu, COVID, and RSV vaccines since the autumn campaign began, despite the national vaccination booking system closing.
The NHS confirmed that 2024 was its busiest year ever for A&E and ambulance services. December alone saw the highest number of ambulance incidents ever recorded in a single month, with 806,405 incidents, contributing to a total of 8.94 million for the year—1 in 14 more than in 2023.
A&E departments faced unprecedented demand, with 2.35 million attendances in December. The total for 2024 reached 27.42 million, marking the busiest year ever and a 7.1% increase from 2023.
Despite these pressures, NHS staff continued to deliver for patients, seeing around 150,000 more patients within the four-hour target in December compared to the previous year. Measures like surgical hubs and community diagnostic centres have helped protect planned care from winter pressures, resulting in 1.56 million elective treatments in November—the highest number ever for that month.
Thanks to the dedication of NHS staff, the waiting list decreased by 61,413 to 7.48 million in November, the lowest since May 2023. The number of patients waiting over 18 weeks and over a year also saw significant reductions.
The NHS and government recently launched a new Elective Care Reform Plan to achieve the goal of treating 92% of patients within 18 weeks, with expanded capacity, reforms, and improvements to the NHS App among the measures planned.
For the past eight months, the NHS has delivered record diagnostic activity, with 2.44 million tests and checks in November—a fifth more than pre-pandemic levels. The NHS also met the cancer faster diagnosis standard, with 77% of patients receiving a diagnosis or all-clear within four weeks.
The commitment and hard work of NHS teams continue to drive improvements and ensure patients receive the care they need during these challenging times.
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