Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of ensuring that patients in NHS Accident and Emergency waiting rooms are frequently monitored by clinicians.

Patients who attend emergency departments are triaged on arrival. This is a clinical assessment, often carried out by a registered nurse, to prioritise patients based on the urgency of their care. All National Health Service providers must have systems in place to appropriately manage clinical priority and patient safety within their emergency departments.