The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has issued a stark warning, declaring that the practice of treating patients in hospital corridors constitutes a "type of torture" and is directly leading to patient deaths while causing severe psychological distress for NHS staff.
Dossier of Distress: Choking Deaths and Overflow Wards
In a harrowing new dossier of evidence, the union details one case where an elderly patient choked to death in a corridor, completely unseen by medical staff. The report, based on testimony from 436 nurses across the UK gathered between 2 and 9 January 2025, paints a picture of a system buckling under extreme pressure.
Demand for care has become so intense that hospitals are being forced to convert unconventional spaces into makeshift clinical areas. The RCN reveals that dining rooms, staff kitchens, and even rooms designated for viewing deceased relatives are now routinely used as overspill wards to accommodate the overflow.
One nurse in the south of England reported "having nightmares" after a patient died in a departure lounge that had been turned into a temporary ward. Another, based in Yorkshire, recounted how a terminally ill patient spent an entire week in an overflow area before being moved to a side room, where they subsequently died. "I won't ever forget that," the nurse stated.
A 'Routine' National Emergency
The crisis is not confined to winter or specific regions. A nurse in the north-west of England said it had become "routine" for 26 patients to be stuck in a corridor awaiting a bed, despite their hospital's own policy stating no more than six should be placed there.
Professor Nicola Ranger, the RCN's General Secretary, said the testimony revealed "the devastating human consequences of corridor care, with patients forced to endure conditions which have no place in our NHS." She emphasised that the unacceptable practice is now spreading beyond emergency departments into acute assessment units, respiratory wards, and elderly care wards. Following this evidence, the union has labelled the situation a "national emergency."
This warning follows a recent alert from the NHS's own safety watchdog in England, the Health Services Safety Investigations Body. It stated that "temporary care environments" pose serious risks, including infection, a lack of call bells, and inadequate patient monitoring, confirming that some patients have died undetected in such areas.
Government Pledges and Sceptical Frontline Staff
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has pledged to end the use of corridor care in England by 2029, if not sooner. He pointed to initiatives like "super clinics," the use of AI for patient assessment, and the "further faster 20" programme—where NHS "crack teams" helped 20 trusts in areas of high economic inactivity reduce waiting lists three times faster than the national average—as evidence of progress.
However, NHS staff groups remain deeply sceptical that this promise can be fulfilled, given the chronic and widespread overloading of hospitals. The scale of the challenge is underscored by estimates from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, which suggests that approximately 16,600 people a year in England—around 320 per week—die as a direct result of delays in accessing A&E care or a bed on a ward.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson responded: "No one should receive care in a corridor. The situation we inherited is unacceptable and undignified, and we are determined to end it." They cited immediate steps including a £450m investment to expand urgent care, building 40 new same-day emergency care centres, and preparing earlier for winter pressures.
