Embargoed until 00:01 Thursday 19 December 2024

Responding to NHS England's announcement that hundreds of thousands of older and frail patients will receive urgent treatment from home this winter Rory Deighton, acute director at the NHS Confederation, said:

“Finding new ways of providing care that can ease the pressure on hospitals is absolutely essential if we are going to put the NHS on a sustainable footing – particularly over the winter months. With the health service already facing what looks likely to be a very difficult winter it is vital that innovations like this are set up and expanded so that we do not face another winter like this.

“Helping people to stay safe and healthy at home is a vision for a future, integrated model of care that recognise the changing needs of an aging population. These sorts of programmes are what it looks like. Not only is it better for patients, but it also has the potential to reduce the pressure on A&E departments by cutting waiting times, minimising the use of ‘corridor care’, and allowing ambulance crews to focus on reaching life-threatening emergencies sooner.”