Nottingham University Hospitals have declared a critical incident due to pressures on their services.
The trust, which operates Queen’s Medical Centre (QMC) and City Hospital, said on January 13 that hospitals are full.
Queen’s Medical Centre is Nottingham’s main hub for A&E emergencies and out patient appointments but have said that they have been facing rising demands due to staff sickness and winter infections leading to unacceptable delays.
This means that many patients have been left waiting to be seen in corridors due to the lack of space.
QMC’s A&E department can only deal with 350 patients a day, but they are currently seeing numbers of around 500.
More than 500 patients came through A&E on their busiest day (January 7) meaning there were no spare hospital beds and patients faced lengthy delays.
“We are experiencing pressures like never before.”
Andrew Hall, Chief Operating Officer at Nottingham University Hospitals
Andrew Hall, Chief Operating Officer at Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH), said: “We are experiencing pressures like never before.
“Despite our teams working tirelessly, the demand on our hospitals far exceeds our capacity.
“Declaring a Critical Incident is not a decision we have taken lightly, but it is necessary to protect patient safety.
“I am deeply sorry for the poor experience this is causing and ask everyone to treat our staff with kindness as they work through this difficult period to deliver the quality of care that you expect.”
The trust said they would take necessary measures to alleviate pressures on staff and facilities.
“AN EXTREMELY LONG WAIT.”
dR MANJEET sHEHMAR, MEDICAL DIRECTOR AT NUH.
This includes creating extra space and increasing bed numbers, stopping non-essential meetings and redeploying staff.
Dr Manjeet Shehmar, Medical Director at NUH, added: “If you attend our ED at QMC for conditions that are not an emergency then you will have an extremely long wait.
“We continue to ask the public to help us by only using ED in an emergency or serious accidents. For all other issues please ensure you have called 111 beforehand to be directed to the most appropriate service.
“If you have a planned appointment, please continue to attend unless you hear from us.”
QMC said they remained in a state of a critical incident on January 14 and into January 15 but had been working hard to improve the situation.
For information on NUH website visit, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust | Leading Healthcare and Medical Research | NUH
For direct information on non emergency health concerns visit, Get help for your symptoms – NHS 111
