"Extreme surge in demand" on Cornwall's entire health system laid bare in joint letter
It reveals the extent of bed-blocking, visits to A&E and one of the busiest weekends for Minor Injury Units
Last updated 19th Aug 2021
Officials have laid bare the 'ongoing extreme surge in demand' on Cornwall's entire health care system.
They have written a joint letter after bosses described casualty at Treliske as being so busy, it is "like New Year every day".
More than 400 patients passed through A&E over the weekend.
Inside the hospital, over 100 others were well enough to leave but waiting for the right care package outside or for loved ones to pick them up. That is the equivalent of FIVE wards.
The letter was published on Wednesday 18th August, when 27 people with coronavirus were in hospital in Cornwall. That includes five in intensive care.
Elsewhere in the system, the level of demand on GPs is well above the national average. They took over 337,000 appointments in June alone.
Now residents and visitors in Cornwall are being urged to make use of pharmacies, call 111 if it is not an emergency, collect loved ones from hospital as quickly as they can.
Joint Letter from Cornwall's Health Care Bosses:
'The health and care system in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly is experiencing an ongoing extreme surge in demand. There’s no single reason for this - it’s a complex mix of factors affecting the whole health and care system.
These factors include the impact of COVID-19, providing care for our elderly and vulnerable citizens outside of hospital, and an increase in the numbers of people visiting our county for a holiday.
The emergency department in Truro had another busy weekend with more than 400 people seeking help. Inside the hospital there were more than 100 patients well enough to go home but waiting for care to be provided from elsewhere within our health and care system or for someone to collect them. That's the equivalent of 5 wards. We are urging anyone who is called to collect a loved one to come to do so as quickly as possible so the bed can be given to someone else who really needs it.
Additionally, there are more than 700 people requiring care and support that is currently unavailable in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. Support and one-off grants are available to help care for people when they are at home.
We have 27 people in hospital with COVID-19, including 5 on the intensive care unit. More than 24 care homes in Cornwall are closed due to COVID-19.
Our NHS 111 service experienced huge pressure this weekend, with more than 2,000 calls made.
Our minor injury units had one of their busiest weekends. This was exacerbated by short-notice staff sickness; supporting Boardmasters; and the sheer volume of people seeking urgent treatment, particularly at Camborne and Redruth Community Hospital minor injury unit on Sunday.
Primary care is the NHS’ front door, and the level of demand for GP services shows no sign of abating. Nationally, there were 26.7million appointments in June 2021 – the same level as pre-pandemic in January 2020. In Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, our GPs undertook 337,097 appointments during the same period. NHS Kernow Clinical Commissioning Group represents 0.88% of the English NHS registered population, yet our June data totals 1.26% of total appointments – far higher than the national average.
This sheer volume of calls has resulted in GPs and nurses working through long lists of requests to call people back. More and more people are contacting their GP surgery for home visits or if they need help for their mental health. While GPs have continued to provide face-to-face appointments throughout the pandemic for anyone who needs to be seen in person, the increase in requests have added significant pressure to primary care.
As health and care leaders in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly we are faced with challenging choices to maintain important services for both staff and the communities we serve.
This letter is designed to help you understand what we are doing, why we are doing it, and what you may be able to do to help'.
The letter has been signed by representatives from Cornwall Council, NHS Kernow Clinical Commissioning Group, GPs, Royal Cornwall Hospitals' NHS Trust and Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation, as well as Kate Shields, Chief Executive Integrated Care System.
What is being done to cope with demand?
The letter states: "We know that severe pressures are being felt across the entirety of health and social care in Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly and in other parts of the country, so a whole-system approach is required to meet these challenges so we can provide the care and treatment needed.
"With no evidence to suggest the pressures will reduce during the coming months, we are taking a series of steps to cope with demand. For example:
• Actively recruiting to vacancies and bringing additional staff into Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
• Supporting them with accommodation so they can start work quickly.
• Deploying clinicians from corporate services back to frontline patient care.
• Focussing resources to where we know they will be needed, for example diverting staff from small minor injury units to the larger and busier ones.
• Preparing for a further surge at the end of August, in babies and children with respiratory syncytial virus or RSV. This is a common respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms. While most children recover in a week or 2, RSV can be serious for babies and children. We expect to see significant numbers of children and babies with this condition through until November.
• Putting in place arrangements for the COVID-19 booster and flu vaccination programme to protect our population.
• Supporting a national drive to reach holidaymakers before they leave home for Cornwall, so they bring the right medicines and know what NHS help is available if needed on their staycation.
"Our staff are working harder than ever, while managing the additional measures which are now part of our everyday approach to COVID-19. These include wearing and changing personal protective equipment, maintaining social distancing, and the enhanced cleaning of areas where COVID-19 or suspected COVID-19 patients have been treated".
How can I help?
The joint letter states: "People in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly have given incredible support to the NHS during 2020/21 and the advent of the pandemic and its lockdowns. We need you again to help us to help you and your loved ones by taking the following actions:
• Encourage visitors and residents to make use of pharmacies. GPs are routinely being contacted for advice and treatment of urinary infections, back pain which has flared up during the journey to Cornwall, gout and insect bites – all of which can be treated by phone or by a pharmacist.
• Encourage residents and visitors to contact their GP as usual. Your own GP can speak to you by telephone or online, wherever you are. People may need to wait for an appointment.
• Go online to NHS 111 or call 111.
• Encourage parents to download the free NHS HandiApp which provides advice about common childhood conditions. Most fevers, and coughs can be treated with Calpol, drinking water, and will improve within a week. Call your GP or 111 if your child does not get better, or their condition worsens.
• Protect our ambulance service and the NHS by only calling 999 in a genuine, life-threatening emergency, and do not call back for an arrival time.
• Encourage families to take their relatives home when they are ready for discharge. Financial support is available in the form of a one-off discharge grant for people who are ready to leave hospital but need a bit of extra care and support to return home. Part of the national hospital and community support discharge policy the grant will help ease the current challenges around access to regulated care across Cornwall and Isles of Scilly and support discharge from hospital.
"We promise that we are doing all we can to strengthen the position of the health and care system in response to the pressures. We are grateful for your support".
More information on the right place to go to access health care in Cornwall can be found on the NHS Kernow website.