Dorset's hospitals reach 'critical point' during Covid-19 crisis

Dorset's hospitals are reaching 'a critical point with unprecedented and extreme levels of demand'.

Health bosses say despite the lockdown, they are running out of beds and space to treat people.

The county's three hospitals, Royal Bournemouth, Poole Hospital and Dorset County, are treating more than 500 people with Covid-19.

The figure is higher than at any other point in the pandemic with more people needing hospital treatment than in the first wave.

Any positive impact of the current lockdown has yet to be felt in hospitals in Dorset, said health bosses.

"It’s a really difficult time"

Dr Matt Thomas, deputy chief medical officer at, University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust, said: “There is pressure all the way through the system.

"It’s a really difficult time. It was easy to see the new lockdown was absolutely needed. Hands, face and space is still the message.

"But for those not sticking to the rules, I wish they could be a fly on the wall in the hospital or in our team meetings and see the fears and frustrations and the tears shed over those conversations that the staff have with patients and families of the most vulnerable."

"We need everyone to follow the rules"

Sam Crowe, Dorset's director of public health, said: "Our NHS and social care colleagues have been doing an incredible job under very difficult circumstances.

"Covid infections particularly across the BCP Council area have not fallen as quickly as we would have liked.

"We know from our data that a rise in community cases is reflected in a rise in hospital cases and the same is true of the reverse, until community cases reduce we won’t see that reflected in our hospital admissions.

"No one wants to be in a lockdown for the third time, but unfortunately this is the only choice we have to constrain coronavirus.

"Stopping social mixing is the best way we can collectively tackle the Covid-19 pandemic and do our bit to stop transmission levels rising.

"So please keep doing what you are doing - stay at home unless it’s for essential reasons, like shopping for food or going to medical appointments – including getting your vaccine.

"We need everyone to follow the rules, it is the only way that we will break transmission and bring our coronavirus cases down."