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Staying safe
Staying safe
Overcrowding is the biggest challenge faced by emergency departments in the NHS nowadays.
The Trust is continuously implementing measures to tackle the problem:
System review and changes in procedure on the wards to reduce the length of stay
Introducing extra capacity beds and boarding to allow patients out from the ED
Review of ED staffing to match the increased workload demand
Introducing the SWINCA Protocol to maintain operational safety
Our main duty is to do everything we can in ED to maintain safety within the Department
Corridor - non-clinical space
Corridor - non-clinical space
"Corridor Care" is not what we want to tolerate, but when clinical spaces run out, we are forced to use alternative spaces (including the corridor).
In a comprehensive Survey conducted in January 2024, we found that no clinician would accept the corridor as a "clinical area". Therefore, we shall use the corridors as "non-clinical " areas, and only patients suitable to wait in non-clinical areas (SWINCA) will be allowed to stay there.
SWINCA
SWINCA
Trust SOP to maintain operational safety within the ED by identifying patients suitable for waiting in non-clinical areas and allocating clinical areas to patients who need assessment or active care.
Read the SHORT SWINCA GUIDE for clinicians
RCEM
RCEM
Overcrowding in ED is a national (actually a world wide) phenomenon and a well recognized risk.
Read the RCEM paper about "Why overcrowding of the Emergency Department matters";
and the RCEM Toolkit to tackle crowding.
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