Gloucestershire hospitals facing pressures due to increase in Covid patients
The NHS Trust is calling on the community to held reduce transmission
Hospitals in Gloucestershire are facing pressures due to an increase in Covid patients.
The Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Trust say they are treating 80 in-patients with coronavirus across their sites in Gloucester and Cheltenham.
The number of patients with Covid-19 has almost doubled in the week alone.
The Trust is calling on the community to reduce the transmission of COVID-19 and making the right choices when they require urgent care.
Professor Mark Pietroni, Medical Director and Deputy Chief Executive, said: "We are urging local people to continue to take every possible precaution to help reduce community transmission, as well as observing our guidance about coming to our hospitals as either an outpatient or a visitor.
"This includes attending appointments alone where possible and for people to continue to take lateral flow tests regularly to ensure that they do not have COVID-19 when attending our hospitals for any reason.
Colleagues at our hospitals have worked through unrelenting pressures for the last 18 months and face a challenging winter ahead.
"While we have prepared extremely well over the last few months and continue to manage these pressures to the best of our abilities, we are seeking the continued support of local communities to help protect local NHS services for those most in need."
Members of the public in Gloucestershire are being urged to "choose wisely and carefully" and to consider the range of healthcare options available to them to reduce the pressure on the hsoptials and staff.
What's the alternative to calling 999?
- The ASAP Glos NHS App and website http://www.asapglos.nhs.uk/
- Contact 111 over the phone or online https://111.nhs.uk/
- Visit local pharmacies or Minor Injury Units
- Professor Pietroni added: “We would like to thank the great majority of local people who are accessing services appropriately.
- "We stress that people should not hesitate to attend A&E or call an ambulance with serious and/or life-threatening conditions including chest pain, signs suggestive of a stroke or loss of consciousness.
- “Our commitment remains to provide the best care and treatment for every patient who needs us.”
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