Fifth NHS trust declares critical incident as winter bugs lead to overwhelming demand
A fifth NHS hospital trust has declared a critical incident in the last 24 hours due to the high demand for its services.
Nottingham University Hospitals Trust said it was facing “serious and sustained pressure” caused by rising patient numbers, winter infections and staff illnesses.
Trust chiefs say the merger has led to “significant and unacceptable” delays in emergency departments and hospital wards.
Three trusts in Surrey and one in Kent previously declared critical cases as they struggled to cope with increased applications due to flu and norovirus.
These were the Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust and Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, as well as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother Hospital in Margate.
A critical incident is the highest alert level used by the NHS and once an incident is notified hospitals can redirect resources, postpone non-urgent treatments and seek external support.
Bosses at Nottingham University Hospitals Trust have urged the public to only go to A&E in emergencies or serious accidents and use other services instead.
Patients were facing what they said were “unacceptably long” waits in corridors.
Designed to treat 350 patients a day, A&E staff at the Queen’s Medical Center Campus regularly see more than 500 patients a day. 550 patients went to A&E last Wednesday, the busiest day of the year so far.
“The demand for our hospital beds has exceeded all modeling we had predicted,” the foundation said. “Staff are working under extreme pressure”
Rising flu cases last month have raised fears that the NHS could face its worst flu season in years. According to NHS England, 1,717 patients were admitted to hospitals in England with infections in the first week of December; This figure increased by 56 percent compared to the same week in 2024.
The rise in admissions due to flu has also led health chiefs to worry that overcrowded hospitals will not be able to control the spread of infections, leaving patients being treated for serious illnesses such as cancer at risk of developing it.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has urged people to only use A&E for genuine emergencies amid sub-zero temperatures in the UK this month.
Manjeet Shehmar, medical director at Nottingham University Hospitals Trust, said: “We use every available space in the hospital. This includes our inpatient wards and beds in the emergency department.” [emergency department].
“There are many patients currently having to wait long periods of time in our hallways. This is not care we accept, and we are doing everything we can to make sure we move our patients to a more appropriate location where they can receive the care they need.”
He appealed to people considering going to A&E rather than contacting NHS 111.
At least 17 more foundations declared critical incidents this month.
