Emergency care: what do the May data show? COVID-19 chart series

15 June 2020

About 2 mins to read

In previous analyses we explored how COVID-19 is changing the use of emergency care on a national and regional level.
In these charts we add in the data for May 2020 and reflect on how the picture is changing as the COVID-19 outbreak progresses.

National picture

As in March and April, A&E visits and emergency admissions through A&E were lower in May than in the same month the year before. Ambulance crews transported fewer patients to A&E with more patients treated at the scene.
The percentage reductions in A&E visits, emergency admissions through A&E and the numbers of patients transported to A&E were smaller than in April showing that levels of activity are starting to recover. However, the falls are slightly larger than in March when the lockdown began.
Emergency admissions have recovered at a faster rate than A&E visits, with such admissions 24% down in May compared to 22% down in March.
Visits to major A&E departments were down 33% in May compared 26% in March. The slowest to recover have been activity in minor A&E departments, where visits in May were 58% lower than the total in March 2019. However, these are typically the patients where care could be provided by other NHS services, such as 111 or primary care.

The broad patterns of emergency care use are similar across regions. All regions experienced reductions in visits to minor and major A&E departments, emergency admissions through A&E and patients transported to A&E by ambulance.
London had the largest reduction in major A&E visits (41%), emergency admissions (35%) and the number of patients transported to A&E via ambulance (26%) in May. This is despite London no longer having the highest COVID-19 infection rates. The reductions in minor A&E visits in London are similar to those in other regions.
The North West had the smallest year on year fall in emergency admissions through A&E in May (16%). This is less than half the reduction in London.
All regions experienced a year on year fall in ambulance incidents in May, with the largest reductions in London (12%), the North West, and the South West (both 9%).