MORE than 5,000 patients have been left waiting for more than four hours for emergency care in Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Figures from the NHS reveal that 5,596 people in total had to wait for emergency care at A&Es departments within the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Out of the 5,596 people, three people had to wait more than 12 hours to be admitted.

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Over a third of patients admitted to A&E were not seen for 4 hours – the NHS says that 95 per cent of patients should be admitted, transferred, or discharged in that time.

Accident and emergency departments across the country are facing huge pressures.

There are now also 6.73 million people on the NHS waiting list in England as of June 2022. This is the highest ever recorded.

At the outbreak of the covid pandemic, there were 4.4 million people on the NHS waiting list in England, then a record high.

Nationally, the standard of 92 per cent of people seen within 18 weeks of a referral has not been met since 2016. Now, one in every nine people in England are on the NHS waiting list.

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Councillor Sean Woodcock, leader of the Labour group on Cherwell District Council said: “Patients in Oxfordshire in need of emergency medical attention are forced to wait far too long to be seen, left for hours often in serious pain.

“Unacceptable waits will mean people in Banbury could fall through the cracks. Our NHS is crying out for a change in government to give us the fresh start we need.”

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Read more from this author

This story was written by Gee Harland. She joined the team in 2022 as a senior multimedia reporter.

Gee covers Wallingford, Wantage and Didcot.

Get in touch with her by emailing: Gee.harland@newsquest.co.uk

Follow her on Twitter @Geeharland

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