A NURSE working at a hospital accident and emergency department branded inadequate by inspectors says staff are under so much pressure they fear for patient safety.

The worker said the department at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton was “sliding from one crisis to another” as it battled to cope with staff shortages, high numbers of patients and a lack of beds.

The nurse said many staff believed the Care Quality Commission (CQC) should place the department in special measures to provide an extra focus on the problems it faced.

In a report published last month the CQC found patients were being put at risk by overcrowding and delays.

It said there were not enough nurses to care for patients, cubicles were not always cleaned and there were not enough cubicle spaces, meaning patients were waiting in trolleys, wheelchairs and chairs.

Ambulance workers were also delayed in handing patients over.

However the CQC found staff treated patients with compassion, dignity and respect and provided good clinical care.

It stopped short of placing the department in special measures but will be closely monitoring progress.

The nurse told The Argus: “Obviously no hospital wants to go into special measures but many staff think we need someone external to come in and get a grip on what is happening.

“Patients are spending far too much time in the A&E, department and being placed in areas which are not suitable.

“We are short on staff and now there is a tightening up on using agency workers which means numbers stay low and patients are being put at risk.

“Most of the time we are working flat out but the system is not working.

“A lot of us believe the only way we are going to see any improvements is to go into special measures.

“It is not ideal but something needs to be done.”

Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust says improvements are being made, including having specialist medical and surgical clinicians are working alongside the emergency department team.

It has also made changes to the how people are given tests, treatments and therapies on the wards so patients are discharged more quickly and more beds become available.

A spokesman said: "We are making fundamental changes to the way we work in A&E and the wider hospital which will make a positive difference to patient care and all our staff have a role to play in ensuring these changes make the best possible impact.

"Like every hospital across the country, we are expecting the winter to be a challenge but our staff have the required commitment and expertise to deliver safe and timely care and, as ever, we will do our utmost to ensure this is what our patients receive.”