More than 120 'bed blockers' at King's Mill Hospital every day according to latest figures

It comes after the average number of delayed discharges in England reached a new high that month.

The Department for Health and Social Care recently announced an additional £500 million would be spent on speeding up the release of patients from hospital – but health think-tank the King's Fund said this is insufficient to deal with the problem.

SFH, which runs King’s Mill in Sutton, as well as Mansfield Community and Newark hospitals, said an average of 128 of its beds each day were occupied by people ready to be discharged.

Rachel Eddie, SFH chief operating officer, said: “Our hospitals are here for patients when they need them and we’re doing all we can to ensure patients can continue to access the care they need as quickly and safely as possible.

“Once patients have received the vital attention they need, it is important we work to support them to return to wherever they call home to continue their recovery and help free hospital beds for those that need them most.

“Our colleagues are doing all they can to make that happen, including opening additional beds to care for more patients, encouraging same-day care to avoid overnight stays and working to identify and fast-track patients ready to leave hospital to help them return home as soon as possible.”

Across the country, the average number of occupied beds has risen consistently, from 11,590 per day in June to 13,305 in September and 13,613 last month, the highest figure since comparable data began in December 2021.

David Maguire, of the King's Fund, said the problem is “another chapter in an ongoing story” as the NHS continues to deal with post-coronavirus pandemic pressures and stretched budgets.

Nationally, just 40 per cent of hospital patients were discharged when ready in October. In SFH, this rose to 89 per cent, from 88 per cent in September.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has announced an extra £2.7 billion over the next two years for adult social care services to reduce bed blocking, alongside the discharge fund, which will see £200m allocated to councils to bolster the social care workforce, and £300m to integrated care boards.