Winter pressure means demand soars at Great Western Hospital
They say: “Our teams are working tirelessly to treat patients as quickly as we can"
As the cold weather bites across the West Country, the team at Swindon's Great Western Hospital are warning that demand continues to soar.
They're reporting a Level 4 alert, which means they could see instances of patient safety being compromised, as teams deal with winter pressures, and what's described as a "quad-demic" of flu, norovirus, RSV and Covid.
A spokesperson for Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said: “Great Western Hospital, like the wider NHS, is currently facing very high demand from patients arriving at our urgent and emergency care service.
“Our teams are working tirelessly to treat patients as quickly as we can and working with social care colleagues to get people home as soon as they are able to so that we can free up more beds.
“With cold weather expected in the forthcoming days, people are urged to take extra care and ensure their home medicine box is appropriately stocked.
“We have seen a rise in patients with flu in recent days. For many people, flu-like symptoms such as headaches, fevers and sore throats, can be easily managed at home through a combination of resting, staying hydrated and safely making use of common medicine box items, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen.
“Local people can also help us by only coming to hospital if they really need to, and using the NHS 111 service online in the first instance, which can direct people to the most appropriate healthcare setting – which may not be hospital.”
Across the country, pressures are also being felt.
Latest NHS data shows there were an average of 74 children with RSV in hospital wards in England last week, down from 87 the previous week but higher than at this point a year ago.
The number of hospital beds occupied each day by patients who had tested positive for Covid-19 averaged 1,184, down week-on-week from 1,277.
An average of 528 hospital beds in England were filled each day last week by patients with diarrhoea and vomiting or norovirus-like symptoms, down from 723 the previous week but higher than the equivalent figure at this point last winter (377) and two years ago (338).
The average number of flu patients in hospital in England each day last week, 4,469, is up sharply on the equivalent week last winter, when the average was 1,312.
It is lower than this point two years ago, however, when the figure stood at 5,441.
The number of people in hospital with flu in England is continuing to rise and is more than four times the level it was a month ago, as an average of 4,469 flu patients were in beds in England each day last week, including 211 in critical care.
This is up 17% from 3,818 the previous week, when 184 were in critical care.
It is also more than four times the number on December 1, when the total stood at 1,098.
The figures have been published in the latest weekly snapshot of the performance of hospitals in England this winter.
Read more: Great Western Hospital under 'significant pressure' as winter approaches