Patients rushing to A&E at a Scots hospital reportedly faced a '40-hour wait' as health services come under extreme pressure.
People seeking treatment at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary (ERI)'s emergency department were hit with huge delays on Tuesday night, reports Edinburgh Live.
Local MSP Ian Murray revealed an ERI worker said over 80 people were waiting in the department to be admitted to wards during the night.
In a statement, he said: "A local worker at the ERI told me last night the A&E wait was 40 hours and there were over 80 people waiting to be admitted.
"Our wonderful NHS staff are working their fingers to the bone again but they need the support from the Scottish Government to solve these problems.
"We have demanded a proper NHS catch-up plan that looks at the short term and some of the longer-term issues.
"Local GPs are working extremely hard but overstretched as well which puts more pressure on acute services."
NHS Lothian confirmed 'a number of sites are close to capacity' and that a combination of staff issues and bed capacity were behind the delays at A&E.
Explaining the pressures on the service, Jacquie Campbell, Chief Officer, Acute Services, NHS Lothian said, “Our services are under extreme and sustained pressure with a number of sites being close to capacity.
"A combination of staffing and bed pressures combined with high volumes of patients presenting with complex and serious cases means that patients are having to wait longer than ever before to be admitted.
“We have asked for mutual aid to help ease the situation that our teams and patients are currently facing and are actively re-deploying staff from across the sector into the roles that need them most.
“I cannot praise and thank our staff enough for the ways in which they are continuing to respond to these challenges, however there is no denying that we are in a serious situation.
“We urge everyone in Lothian to play their part to help keep A&E and our acute hospital beds for those that need it most. This includes only going to A&E if your condition is life-threatening.”
Health Secretary Humza Yousaf has now apologised to patients who have endured long waits in accident and emergency departments.
He conceded "some people aren't getting the service neither they nor we would expect" as he was questioned on the situation in NHS Lothian after health chiefs there asked people not to go to A&E unless their condition was "life-threatening".
Lothian MSP Sue Webber said she had been contacted by a constituent who works at Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, where she said some patients were spending more than a day in A&E.
Mr Yousaf told the MSP he had met bosses at the health board and had agreed a "set of immediate actions that will support improvements and minimise delays for patients".
But he stressed: "Our health and care system is under extreme pressure due to the pandemic, and NHS Lothian, like, of course, all health boards, is experiencing significant pressure including workforce challenges, a high level of delayed discharge, which is inevitably affecting waiting times in A&E.
"We recognise that some people aren't getting the service neither they nor we would expect and I apologise to anyone who suffers as a result of that."
The Daily Record previously revealed how a leading emergency medicine specialist said some patients are spending two days in A&E.
John Thomson, vice-president (Scotland) of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, said people are waiting up to 48 hours before being transferred to a ward.
And he estimated the country was 1,000 beds short.
His warning came after Public Health Scotland published A&E waiting times - which were the worst on record.
