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Vanessa Andrews, who lives with partial paralysis after suffering a stroke in 2024, recently spent 20 exhausting hours in the emergency department (ED) at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast during the Christmas holidays. Her experience left her deeply disturbed, describing the atmosphere as “inhumane.” She witnessed many elderly patients sitting for prolonged periods on hard chairs, enduring pain and discomfort while waiting for treatment, a sight she found both “horrifying and heartbreaking.”
During December, emergency departments across Northern Ireland saw an average of nearly 2,600 patients daily, highlighting the immense pressure on the healthcare system. The Belfast Health Trust has issued apologies to those subjected to lengthy waiting times and acknowledged the challenges currently faced by staff and patients alike. Vanessa, who uses a wheelchair and is both a mother and grandmother, said the ordeal was so difficult she would avoid voluntarily visiting an ED in the future unless absolutely necessary.
Her account reveals a distressing picture of emergency care, where pain and lack of dignity are prevalent. She described seeing older patients in need of assistance with toileting and feeding, as well as the emotional toll it took on her. “At one stage, I got quite tearful because I didn’t think I could deal with the pain much longer and all they gave me was a paracetamol which did nothing,” she said. Vanessa also shared the discomfort of waiting in her wheelchair for nearly 12 hours before being transferred to a trolley, emphasizing the agony experienced despite her relatively younger age.
The situation in emergency departments is part of a broader, ongoing crisis in the UK, which has shifted from a seasonal problem to a year-round struggle. High demand, overcrowding, and the failure to meet target times for treatment are now commonplace. The national target of admitting, transferring, or discharging 95% of patients within four hours has not been met since 2013-14. Factors contributing to this issue include an ageing and increasingly ill population, limited access to primary care, and delayed discharges caused by a lack of appropriate community care. The Belfast Health Trust urged the public to carefully assess the urgency of their situation before attending EDs and recommended using a phone consultation service where a healthcare professional can provide guidance
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