Delayed hospital discharges cost estimated £32.5 million -Audit Wales

Lewis Smith, local democracy reporter

Delayed hospital discharges resulted in an estimated cost of £32.5 million, with patients spending thousands of extra days on wards, according to a new report.

The Audit Wales report was heard at a Neath Port Talbot Council governance and audit committee this month where members were told about the review carried out by the watchdog between April 2023 and September 2024.

During this time it looked at the effectiveness of discharge arrangements across the west Glamorgan region, which encompasses the Swansea Bay University Health Board along with both Swansea and Neath Port Talbot Council’s.

64,000 lost bed days

It said between April 2023 and September 2024 there was an average of 232 medically fit patients experiencing delayed discharges each month, which had resulted in over 64,000 lost bed days at an estimated cost of £32.5 million.

The report said: “The rate of delayed discharges across the West Glamorgan region is one of the highest in Wales.

“Between April 2023 and September 2024, each month there were on average 232 medically fit patients whose discharge was delayed.”

The watchdog said there was a number of reasons for these delays which had ultimately impacted access to urgent and emergency care services across the region.

These included workforce challenges, increasing complexity of patient needs such as dementia and mental health, along with fragmented discharge processes and inconsistent documentation.

It added that access to long-term care home beds in Neath Port Talbot was also “problematic”.

Recommendations

As a result Audit Wales gave seven recommendations to the health board and local authorities which included maximising weekend discharges, improving training and guidance for staff, and improving the quality of information sharing and record keeping.

Officers said since the review had been carried out the situation had improved with a drop in the number of delayed discharges to an average of 180 per month and the implementation of a shared dashboard for patient information which could be used by social workers, health staff, and everyone on the ward.

They also accepted that while there was still a long way to go they were proud of the way they were moving forward, with the report reflecting a snap-shot in time, particularly in Neath Port Talbot where the sudden closure of a 90-bed residential care home in November 2023 had made an impact.

Speaking at the meeting Councillor Carol Clement-Williams said while she still had some concerns with the health service, notably when it came to weekend discharges, she was satisfied with the response from Neath Port Talbot Council and the work that had been done to meet the recommendations.

The report was later noted by members in attendance with a further update on progress expected in the future.