Recurring concern

Failure to retain experienced emergency-care staff

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First reported 23 Nov 2023•Latest report 17 Dec 2025

Definition

What this concern includes

Includes failures or hazards within emergency-care services that materially undermine retention, recruitment or maintenance of experienced clinical staff, including staff stress or burnout, loss of experienced personnel and related workforce-retention arrangements where these threaten safe emergency care.

Not included

Excludes generic healthcare staffing shortages, numerical under-resourcing or workforce-capacity concerns where retention or loss of experienced emergency-care staff is not the shared unsafe condition.
Excludes workforce wellbeing or stress concerns outside emergency-care services unless the assertion directly concerns retention of staff needed for emergency care.
Excludes deficiencies in staff competence, training, supervision or clinical performance where retention or experienced-workforce stability is not the identified concern.
Excludes shortages in primary, secondary or social care resources that affect emergency demand but do not identify an emergency-care workforce-retention failure.

Reports: 2
Individual concerns: 2
Date range: 2023–2025
Stated actions: 4

Reports over time

Reports about this concern issued each year.

* 2026 is projected from reports observed to 7 Sep 2026.

Most frequent recipients

Reports about this concern sent to each recipient.

Department of Health and Social Care2

Concerns and responses across reports

Only concerns grouped under this recurring concern are included. Select any concern, action or position to view the source wording.

17 Dec2025
Inner West London
Concerns raised1
1. A&E staff stress and retention failures associated with staff and resource shortages
This report raised 3 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concerns
Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Actions described in response 4
1. Action
  Invest £250 million to expand same-day and urgent care services and support faster diagnosis, treatment and discharge.
  Stated by Department of Health and Social CareStated in progress
2. Action
  Increase urgent care delivered in primary, community and mental health settings.
  Stated by Department of Health and Social CareStated in progress
3. Action
  Increase urgent care capacity outside hospitals through new neighbourhood health services.
  Stated by Department of Health and Social CareStated planned
1. Action
  Improve hospital flow by reducing waits exceeding 12 hours and progressing towards eliminating corridor care.
  Stated by Department of Health and Social CareStated planned
AI-generated summary

Dr Debapriya Ghosh and Mr David Albert Ward · Prevention of Future Deaths report

This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.

Report summary

Dr Debapriya Ghosh and Mr David Albert Ward died at St George’s Hospital after falls causing traumatic head injuries while they were being treated in a busy A&E department. The report raised concerns about insufficient staffing and resources, inadequate nursing risk assessment and supervision, reliance on families to supervise patients, and the resulting risks in overcrowded A&E departments.

Read the report on judiciary.uk
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation
A&E staff stress and retention failures associated with staff and resource shortages
Wider context from the report
“2. That at work stress on A&E staff due to staff and resource shortages may cause them to leave the profession exacerbating shortages of experienced staff and thus increase risks in A&E. ”
Source location
Dr Debapriya Ghosh and Mr David Albert Ward · Prevention of Future Deaths report
Page 3 · concerns
Open source report
Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation
Invest £250 million to expand same-day and urgent care services and support faster diagnosis, treatment and discharge.

Verbatim wording from the response
“• Investing £250 million into expanding same day and urgent care services, helping avoid unnecessary admissions to hospital and supporting faster diagnosis, treatment and discharge for patients.”

Source location
Response from Department for Health and Social Care
Page 2 · response
Published 19 December 2025
Open published response
Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation
Increase urgent care delivered in primary, community and mental health settings.

Verbatim wording from the response
“• Increasing the number of patients receiving urgent care in primary, community and mental health settings.”

Source location
Response from Department for Health and Social Care
Page 2 · response
Published 19 December 2025
Open published response
Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation
Increase urgent care capacity outside hospitals through new neighbourhood health services.

Verbatim wording from the response
“• In the longer-term, our 10 Year Health Plan will increase the urgent care capacity outside hospital through new neighbourhood health services, reducing demand pressures on A&E.”

Source location
Response from Department for Health and Social Care
Page 2 · response
Published 19 December 2025
Open published response
Source evidence

How this respondent action was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation
Improve hospital flow by reducing waits exceeding 12 hours and progressing towards eliminating corridor care.

Verbatim wording from the response
“• Improve hospital flow, with a focus on reducing the number of patients waiting more than 12 hours and making progress towards eliminating corridor care.”

Source location
Response from Department for Health and Social Care
Page 2 · response
Published 19 December 2025
Open published response
23 Nov2023
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly
Concerns raised1
1. Burn-out among paramedics, nurses and doctors
This report raised 2 other concerns. They are not shown here because they do not form part of this recurring concern.
Responses linked to these concerns
Each statement is shown once, even when linked to more than one concern.
Respondent positions 1
1. Position
  Specific local urgent and emergency care improvements are best addressed by SWAST, the hospital trust and the local Integrated Care Board.
  Stated by Department of Health and Social CareRedirects responsibility
AI-generated summary

John Charles Seagrove and 2 others · Prevention of Future Deaths report

This summary was generated using AI from the published report. Please read the original report for the complete account.

Report summary

The report concerns the deaths of John Charles Seagrove, Pauline Mary Humphris and Patricia Joan Steggles, following delays in emergency ambulance response and in handing patients over to hospital staff. The report raises concerns about worsening emergency department pressures, with ambulances waiting outside, and reported burnout and recruitment difficulties among healthcare staff. In Mrs Humphris’s case, the coroner found that ambulance and hospital admission delays may have contributed to the outcome; in Mrs Steggles’s case, the inquest heard that earlier hospital arrival would probably have led to survival.

Read the report on judiciary.uk
Source evidence
How this individual concern was interpreted
PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the report wording shown below.
PFD Monitor interpretation
Burn-out among paramedics, nurses and doctors
Wider context from the report
“It was acknowledged in the evidence that matters had improved over the summer this year. What is of concern, however, is that these gains have not been maintained and the situation has now worsened with 15-20 ambulances waiting outside the ED on occasions over the last three weeks. I have spoken to the Medical Director at RCHT, ████████, and he has confirmed that is the current position. This concern is compounded by the recognition that we are yet to experience the additional pressures that winter will bring. Additionally, I am now hearing evidence at inquest of ‘burn-out’ among paramedics, nurses and doctors. At the inquest into the death of Mrs Steggles, I was advised that the hospital is now finding it difficult to recruit to vacant positions. ”
Source location
John Charles Seagrove and 2 others · Prevention of Future Deaths report
Page 4 · concerns
Open source report
Source evidence

How this respondent position was interpreted

PFD Monitor created a concise, searchable interpretation from the published response wording shown below.

PFD Monitor interpretation
Specific local urgent and emergency care improvements are best addressed by SWAST, the hospital trust and the local Integrated Care Board.

Verbatim wording from the response
“Your report raises concerns about the response time performance of the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWAST), ambulances queueing as a result of patient handover delays at the Royal Cornwall Hospital, and the pressures being felt by paramedics, nurses and doctors. You have also raised these concerns with the ambulance service and the hospital trust, as well as with the local Integrated Care Board as copied interested parties. These NHS organisations are best placed to respond on the specific action being taken locally to improve urgent and emergency care services.”

Source location
Response from Department of Health and Social Care
Page 1 · response
Published 29 November 2023
Open published response

Data last updated 7 September 2026

What this concern includes

Not included

Reports over time

Concerns raised1

A&E staff stress and retention failures associated with staff and resource shortages

Actions described in response An action is something a respondent says it has done, is doing, or plans to do in response to the concern raised.4

Concerns raised1

Burn-out among paramedics, nurses and doctors

Respondent positions A position is what a respondent says about the concern when they do not describe a specific action.1

Actions described in response 4

Respondent positions 1