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  This is why we need ``step down beds``in our Hospital...............
  
  Hospital bed-blocking 'rising'
  
  Bed-blocking a massive problem
  Patients are facing increasing delays in being discharged from hospital, figures obtained by the BBC suggest.
  
  The problem - known as bed-blocking - happens when support from social care or district nursing is not available in the community for vulnerable patients.
  
  Department of Health data shows that in the last two months, there were more than 128,000 days of delays in England, up 11% on the same period last year.
  
  The rise comes after rates have been falling for much of the past decade.
  
  Major problem
  Bed-blocking was viewed as a major problem at the turn of the century.
  
  But numbers started to fall after social care and the NHS were encouraged to develop joint teams to ensure the most needy patients - mainly the elderly - had the right support when they were ready to leave.
  
  To ensure the system worked properly, services can face fines if they fail to put in place the right support.
  
  However, the data released by the Department of Health after a request from the BBC has suggested that trend has now reversed

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