Fresh plea following 'exceptionally busy night' at A&E in Cornwall
Over 80 patients were waiting in casualty at Treliske on Tuesday evening
Cornwall's main hospital has issued a fresh appeal after what is being described as an "exceptionally busy night" at A&E.
82 patients were waiting in casualty at Treliske at one point yesterday evening (4th January).
We are being urged to call 111 unless it is a life-threatening emergency.
Over the Christmas period NHS staff across Cornwall recorded one of their busiest years, with the arrival of 56 babies, 2,000 emergency department and minor injury unit attendances, over 3,600 calls to the 111 and out of hours GP service, and over 420 calls to the mental health line since Christmas Eve.
“It’s been a busy time for our staff in acute and community hospitals, mental health, 111 integrated urgent care and emergency ambulance services,” said Kieran Bignell, System Director of Emergency Care at NHS Kernow, “and a massive thank you goes out to everyone who has been providing care through the Christmas break.”
It comes following an unprecedented number of calls to the integrated care service which provides 111 and out of hours GP services over the Christmas period too.
On Boxing Day alone, the team dealt with more than 883 callers, provided 92 clinic appointments, and made 69 home visits.
Whilst only 216 people turned up at the emergency department and minor injury units on Christmas Day, that number rose by 141% to 512 on bank holiday Monday, 27th December.
More than half of the 2,000 attendances occurred on the 27th and 28th December.
Kieran added: “Unless your need is serious or life-threatening please help us by not coming to our emergency department or calling out of hours services with a long-standing condition, or something that could otherwise wait. Our clinical teams need to be able to concentrate on those people who are in genuinely urgent need. 111 online can guide you to the right place, and if you’re calling 111 by phone, do give us more time to answer during busy periods.”
Hospital bosses say that over the coming weeks Cornwall could also see the impact of the Omicron covid variant on the demand for hospital and other services and everyone is urged to make sure they are fully vaccinated, including booster doses.