Elective surgeries in Ayrshire hospitals remain postponed, health chiefs have confirmed.
NHS Ayrshire & Arran took the decision to pause routine operations in response to the rising number of Covid admissions last month.
The health board insisted the move would be temporary until the end of September.
But admissions have continued to soar throughout the month with numbers not leaving the 130s in a week.
Ayrshire Live revealed that available hospital beds for Covid patients had breached their capacity by 16 as of Monday.
And today bosses revealed that procedures remain paused for the time being with the situation "under constant review."
Routine surgeries of the lowest importance, categorised as priority 3 and priority 4 elective surgery, have been affected.
But priority 2 cancer surgery and priority 2 non-cancer surgeries have not stopped.
All emergency surgery (priority 1) has continued at both Ayr and Crosshouse hospitals.
Medical director Dr Crawford McGuffie said: "In September 2021, NHS Ayrshire & Arran made the difficult decision to temporarily pause priority 3 and 4 elective surgery and this surgery remains paused to date.
"Priority 2 cancer surgery did not stop, and will be continuing along with other non-cancer priority 2 surgery.
"All emergency surgery (priority 1) is continuing at both hospitals, as it has done throughout the pandemic."
The top physician says the health board continues to be under "significant pressures in urgent care," resulting in "culminative pressures" at both hospitals, with the availability of key staff to support service and critical care delivery a concern.
Dr McGuffie offered an apology to patients who are experiencing delays.
He added: "The elective surgery programme is being kept under constant review and will expand as other pressures ease.
"We would like to apologise to any patients who experience a delay in their surgery and provide assurance that all efforts will be made to minimise delays."
Don't miss the latest Ayrshire headlines – sign up to our free daily newsletter here
