'I want to eliminate unacceptable corridor care'

An NHS trust's new boss is determined to "minimise" the number of patients being treated in corridors this winter and wants to "eliminate" it completely.

Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspectors visited Ipswich Hospital in September 2025 and found some patients having to wait up to 20 hours to be treated or admitted to a ward.

In January, the East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT), which runs the site, then declared a week-long critical incident due to "significant pressure".

Paul Scott, who took over as ESNEFT's chief executive in August, has now spoken of his ambition to improve emergency wait times and end corridor care for good.

"Occasionally, we still have to care for people in corridors, but that's unacceptable to me, unacceptable to my staff and unacceptable for the patients experiencing it.

"So, we are determined this winter to make sure we minimise that and eliminate it – [in 12 months] I want to be very well along the way of eliminating corridor care."

Scott, whose predecessor Nick Hulme announced his retirement in October 2025, said staffing levels were now "in a good place".

"We've got 13,000 staff and generally we've got a very low vacancy rate, but there's certain very specialist areas where we find it hard to recruit.

"We've got to think about more creative ways to attract people but also train people locally."

Last winter, the rise in flu and other winter viruses after Christmas saw increased demand for services at Ipswich Hospital.

Scott, however, believed it was "in a better place" this year due to the "amount of beds" it had and the "demands on it".

"There's no doubt there's pressure on our emergency services, but we're opening more beds and making sure there's more doctors on at the weekends and overnight.

"We're pushing really hard to make sure that we've got the right pathway back to home or a care home and for patients who are ready to be discharged."

According to the Norfolk and Suffolk Integrated Care Board's Winter Plan, ending corridor care remains an "overriding priority" for all organisations and partners.

It said corridor care safety thresholds would be established and it would look out for indicators of corridors being used over the winter.

"The board is assured that system partners have agreed and implemented measures to eliminate corridor care," the report said.

In the CQC's report, published in February, staff and capacity shortages were cited as key reasons why patients were facing long waits.

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