The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) has responded to NHS England’s publication of a data definition for corridor care and a commitment to national monthly reporting from May 2026 following calls from the RCP for a timeline on data publication.
Professor Mumtaz Patel, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said: ‘NHS England’s definition of corridor care and its national reporting timeline mark an important step forward. The RCP’s calls for year-round corridor care data were instrumental in NHS England’s commitment to first publish data over a year ago. We welcome that they have today set out a timeline for that data publication as we have been asking for.
‘Our members and others in the health and care community sounded the alarm on the growing corridor care crisis because we see the realities of patients being cared for in unsuitable and unsafe clinical spaces. The national data that we are now expecting in May is vital in not only assessing the scale of the problem but also tracking whether measures to prevent corridor care are working. It is essential that we guard against any loopholes in the definition published today – including attempts to circumvent the 45-minute standard.
‘We know how hard staff and hospitals are working to reduce corridor care, and welcome NHS England’s commitment to supporting trusts to deliver national actions over the coming months. We welcome the opportunities that we have had to constructively work with NHS England on short-term solutions. But ultimately, many of the factors driving corridor care are long term and structural – we need sustained action to strengthen capacity in social care and to prevent people getting sick in the first place.’