Operationalising the corridor care definition

This document has been produced to support acute hospitals in England to operationalise the corridor care definition.

Where a patient is waiting in a comfortable place for a short period of time – less than 45 minutes – with a plan to move to another place to progress their care, this should not be considered corridor care.

Further examples are outlined below to support accurate recording of corridor care.

Example A: Waiting for diagnostics

Do not count as corridor care if the patient is waiting for 45 minutes or less for an x-ray / other diagnostics where they are comfortable and safe.

Do count it as corridor care if the patient is waiting for over 45 minutes in a corridor with no privacy and dignity, and / or is unsafe.

Example B: Patients waiting to be handed over from the ambulance service in the ED

Do not count as corridor care until the ambulance crew has completed handover to the ED team and left the department. This applies to patients both on trolleys and chairs.

Spaces that are not designed for investigation, management and treatment of patients cannot be deemed to be patient areas in ED. This is to maintain patient safety and dignity of patients and includes corridors. Patients who are deemed fit to sit should be managed in clinical areas which are designed for patient care and this does not include corridor areas.

Example C: Waiting for transfer to a discharge lounge

Do not count as corridor care if the patient is waiting less than 45 minutes outside of a bedspace or cubicle to move to the discharge lounge and is comfortable and safe.

Do count it as corridor care if the patient is waiting for more than 45 minutes outside of a bedspace or cubicle, with or without privacy and dignity, and / or is unsafe. 

Example D: Waiting for admission

Do count this as corridor care if the patient is waiting for more than 45 minutes outside of a cubicle, with or without privacy and dignity, and / or is unsafe.

Example E: The use of clinical areas for additional inpatient capacity

Do not count those patients who are temporarily being cared for, or “bedded”, in other clinical areas such as theatre recovery spaces. The counting of corridor care activity is only for those patients who are being cared for in a corridor space which is not designed for clinical investigation, management and treatment of patients. 

Publication reference: PRN02378