Hospital wards face ‘pandemic-level’ strain with soaring flu cases triggering winter crisis
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Around 20 hospital trusts across England have declared critical incidents with staff facing ‘mammoth demand’ due to the cold weather and flu. England’s top doctor has warned staff in hospitals are facing conditions similar to the “height of the pandemic” amid a national surge in flu cases on wards.
NHS figures reveal there were an average of more than 5,400 patients with flu in hospitals each day last week, up 21 per cent from the previous week and more than three times the level seen at the same point last year. Visits to A&E also rose to an unprecedented level for December, making last year the busiest ever year for emergency departments.
With around 20 NHS hospital trusts declaring critical incidents over the past week, many are now urging people to only use 999 and A&E in life-threatening emergencies, while The Independent has spoken to two patients who witnessed long waits in A&E. Speaking on Thursday after the latest figures on flu cases in hospitals were released, NHS national medical director, Professor Stephen Powis, said: “It is hard to quantify just through the data how tough it is for frontline staff at the moment – with some staff working in A&E saying that their days at work feel like some of the days we had during the height of the pandemic.”.
He added: “It is clear that hospitals are under exceptional pressure at the start of this new year, with mammoth demand stemming from this ongoing cold weather snap and respiratory viruses like flu – all on the back of 2024 being the busiest year on record for A&E and ambulance teams.
