Flu is rising AGAIN: hospital cases rise, emergency services report ‘busiest winter EVER’

England’s emergency services are facing their ‘busiest winter ever’ as flu cases continue to rise, health chiefs warned today.

In December, more than 2.3 million patients attended emergency departments, while ambulance teams responded to more than 800,000 incidents – the highest number ever recorded in a single month.

Separate surveillance data monitoring the flu outbreak in England also suggests that hospital admissions have risen by a fifth in a week and are almost five times higher than in early December.

Figures show that last week alone, more than 5,400 beds were occupied every day by flu patients, 3.5 times more than in the same week last year.

Of these, 254 were in intensive care – a fifth more than the week before.

Winter vomiting norovirus numbers, meanwhile, are almost 50 percent higher than expected for this time of year.

England’s top doctor today warned that NHS staff were under “intense pressure” and facing a situation “similar to the days at the height of the pandemic”.

The crisis has already led to a dozen hospitals reporting critical incidents, meaning they are struggling to provide safe care to patients.

Experts also fear Britain’s ‘dangerous’ cold snap will continue to put pressure on already overburdened hospitals.

Just this week, the UK Health Security Agency extended its ‘amber’ health warning for colds until midday on Sunday 12 January. The previous warning was due to expire yesterday.

Professor Sir Stephen Powis, National Medical Director of the NHS, said: ‘It is clear that hospitals are under exceptional pressure at the start of this new year, with huge demand due to this ongoing cold snap and respiratory viruses such as flu.

‘All this because 2024 is the busiest year ever for emergency departments and ambulance teams.

‘I am always impressed by the remarkable work that NHS staff across a range of services carry out in the face of the current challenges, remaining compassionate and professional and doing everything they can to see patients as quickly as possible, while they are often working in hospitals that are full. to bursting.

‘It’s difficult to quantify just from the data how tough it is for frontline staff right now – with some emergency department staff saying their days at work feel like the days we had during the height of the pandemic.

‘As the incredibly busy winter continues and hospitals are clearly under great pressure, we ask that you please continue to use 999 and emergency services only in life-threatening emergencies.

‘Use NHS 111 and 111 online for other conditions, and use your local GP and pharmacy services as usual.’

Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting added: “Despite the best efforts of staff, patients are still receiving unacceptable standards of care.

‘Although this winter’s campaign vaccinated more people than last winter, this strain of flu has hit hard, putting more than three times as many patients in hospital than this time last year.

‘The annual winter pressure should not lead to an annual winter crisis. That is why this Government is investing significantly in the NHS, implementing fundamental reforms and taking action now to improve social care.

‘It will take time to turn the NHS around, but the fact that waiting lists are now falling shows that change is possible.’

According to the latest NHS weekly figures there Last week there were an average of 5,407 flu patients in hospital in England every day.

For comparison: in the same period last year the number was 1,548. However, it is slightly lower than this point two years ago.

More than 620 hospital beds in England were also filled every day last week by patients with diarrhea and vomiting or norovirus-like symptoms.

This is almost a fifth more than the 528 of the previous week and almost 50 percent more than last year (424).

RSV – which is most common in infants and young children – was up almost half from the same period in 2023.

More than 1,100 beds were also occupied by patients with Covid.

Some hospitals have begun limiting visiting hours and imposing mask mandates amid fears of a rising number of “quad-demic” cases.

At least a dozen have also reported ‘critical incidents’.

These include South Warwickshire University NHS Trust, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust and the University Hospitals of Northamptonshire.

Critical incident is an NHS term used by hospitals when they can no longer guarantee that patient care can be delivered safely.

Such incidents are typically reported in response to overwhelming demand or failing infrastructure.