"Critical incident" declared at Portsmouth's QA Hospital
Services are facing "extreme pressures"
A critical incident has been declared at Portsmouth's Queen Alexandra Hospital as bosses warn they have limited space to treat patients with life-threatening conditions.
The A&E department is full, with people still waiting to be admitted and beds across the hospital are at capacity, bosses said.
The hospital said it was prioritising critical services.
A statement from Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust said services were facing "extreme pressures" and "increasingly challenging" staff shortages because of illness.
A hospital spokesperson said: "Please do not attend the ED unless it’s an emergency.
"Non-emergency attendances will not be seen and will be redirected to the urgent treatment centres at St Mary’s Hospital, Gosport and Petersfield.
"Do not call 999 unless it is a serious or life-threatening emergency as the ambulance service is also under intense pressure and operating under a critical incident.
"Our immediate priority is to ensure there are beds available to admit our most seriously ill patients.
"We will be focusing on safely discharging as many patients as possible.
"We ask that families and loved ones support us with this and collect patients as soon as they are ready to be discharged.
"We will be reviewing the situation regularly and thank you for all your support during this difficult and busy time."
The move comes just hours after a major ambulance trust which serves Hampshire declared a "critical incident" due to "extreme pressures" facing its services.
South Central Ambulance Service said its staff are continuing to "work extremely hard" to manage the situation.
A critical incident is usually declared when an organisation's services are disrupted so much they are no longer able to operate as normal, meaning special requirements have to be implemented.
Those in a life-threatening situation or serious emergency should still call 999.