Patients now waiting two-and-a-half times longer to be treated post-triage in Northern Ireland's A&Es than 10 years ago
The wait for patients to be treated after being triaged in Northern Ireland’s emergency departments (EDs) has more than doubled in a decade, new data indicates.
The latest set of figures on hospital waiting times paint a picture of the steep decline in service over the past 10 years, and DUP health spokeswoman Diane Dodds has told the News Letter that “behind those statistics are people in pain, frightened families and patients left for hours in corridors because the system cannot move them through safely and quickly”.
Meanwhile Alliance health spokesman Danny Donnelly told the News Letter that “the need for widespread, transformative change to save our health service has never been more pressing”.
The fresh figures reveal that during September 2026 the median waiting time from triage to the start of treatment in an emergency department was one hour and 45 minutes.
The News Letter has combed through data for September 2016, and at that time the median waiting time from triage to start of treatment was 41 minutes (which was itself an improvement on the 44 minutes one year prior).
That means the median wait time has increased by roughly 2.5 times in 10 years.
Other points in the data include the fact that 71.5% of people in September 2016 were seen at Type 1 EDs within four hours of being brought through the doors.
By September 2026, this had fallen to 30.7%.
The target is meant to be 95%.
In September 2016, the number of patients waiting over 12 hours to be either discharged or admitted at a Type 1 EDs throughout the month had been 152.
By September 2026, that number had jumped to 12,815.
The target is for no-one to be waiting over 12 hours.
A Type 1 ED is a 24-hour, consultant led department; most (nine in total) of Northern Ireland’s EDs are Type 1.
Mrs Dodds said: “The Royal College of Emergency Medicine has already estimated that over 1,000 excess deaths last year were associated with waits of 12 hours or more in our EDs.
"Just in the last few days, they have called on the minister to act to reduce the pressure on EDs over the winter months. That warning cannot be ignored.
"The minister, Robbie Butler, must show what he is actually going to do about these terrible statistics.”
Mr Donnelly restated Alliance’s call for a cross-party deal on reforming the Province’s NHS, and said: “Our A&E departments are under a huge amount of pressure and that will only increase coming into the winter months.
"With trusts simultaneously being asked to make swinging budget cuts, we have a perfect storm on our hands, and it is little wonder that ED staff are so desperately concerned.”
SDLP health spokesman Colin McGrath said: “Behind every statistic is a person – someone frightened, someone in pain, someone waiting desperately for the care they need.”
He added: “And that is why the Executive's failure to agree a budget is an absolute disgrace.
“How can we expect our health service to plan for winter pressures, recruit staff, expand capacity or transform services when the Executive cannot even agree how public money should be allocated?”
When contacted, the Department of Health issued a statement to the News Letter saying: “Tackling ED waiting times requires a whole hospital, whole system approach, supported by strong partnership across Health and Social Care.
"Staff in EDs are making every effort to provide optimal clinical outcomes and keep waiting times as short as possible in challenging circumstances.
“As winter approaches we can’t control what extra pressures it might bring, but we can use our learning from previous years to plan to mitigate those pressures.
"The trusts have published their operational delivery plans for winter 2026/27.
"They include a range of initiatives to reduce ED pressures including providing more care close to home where this is safe, reducing avoidable hospital visits and admissions, improving care for people who do need hospital treatment, and helping patients return home as soon as they are ready.
“The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service is playing its part to reduce pressure on EDs – initiatives like ‘hear and treat’ and ‘see and treat’ are helping to manage demand and ensuring people get the right care, at the right time in the right place.
“These initiatives are supported by the flu and Covid booster vaccination programme, helping the public to stay healthy and well through the winter months.
"We would also remind the public that Urgent Care Centres, minor injury units and GP out-of-hours services are operational across Northern Ireland, helping to divert appropriate demand away from EDs.”