A "DETERIORATION" in the performance of Colchester Hospital’s emergency department meant its number of recorded deaths leapt by 72 per cent in September compared to the same period last year.

Board meeting papers published by the East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust show the department was put under additional pressure because of the fall in the number of patients being discharged each day.

Figures for September show 19 deaths were recorded in Colchester Hospital’s emergency department, up from the 11 recorded for the same month the last year.

Meeting - papers from an ESNEFT board meeting earlier this month have been published onlineMeeting - papers from an ESNEFT board meeting earlier this month have been published online (Image: Pexels) Stats also show the number of patients staying in the department for 12 hours increased by 67.8 per cent compared to August, whilst the number of people assessed within 15 minutes of being admitted to hospital fell by 7.2 per cent.

The downturn has been put down to a change of contract with short-term care providers, meaning hospital staff are put under greater strain due to the increase in patients staying in hospital.

An integrated performance report, which is published by the Trust every three months, said an “exit block” resulted in “deterioration across all performance metrics”.

Another section of the report said a deeper understanding of patient deaths at Colchester Hospital’s emergency department had been requested, with a new contract with care providers reinstated at the start of this month.

A section of the report read: “The Trust are working with the integrated care board to ensure bridging capacity is brought back online to support flow and capacity.”

The Trust’s interim chief medical officer, Tim Leary, admitted more patients were being looked after in the emergency department because of greater strains on the hospital.

He said: “We always aim to provide kind and compassionate end-of-life care to our patients.

“Due to pressures on our system, this sometimes has to be provided in our emergency department.

“We work closely with our partners across the health system to make sure we can get patients home, or to their place of care, as soon as they are well enough.

“This, in turn, helps us to admit patients into hospital from our emergency departments more quickly where needed.

Pressure - a chief medical officer at the Trust said patients have been staying in the hospital longer because of a change in contractPressure - a chief medical officer at the Trust said patients have been staying in the hospital longer because of a change in contract (Image: Steve Brading) "During September a temporary change was made to how community care is provided for our patients who are waiting for a care package outside of hospital.

"This has meant that some patients needed to stay in hospital longer than in previous months.

“We have worked closely with our care partners to make sure all patients who can be discharged, are able to go home as soon as possible.”