Hospital bosses are warning that the worst is yet to come as soaring superflu rates plunge the NHS into a “worst-case scenario” just days before the latest round of doctors’ strikes.
The number of people in hospital in England with flu is at a record high for this time of year, with numbers up 55 per cent in a week, new NHS figures show.
Health chiefs have warned that the “unprecedented wave” is pushing staff to the limit, and said the surge in admissions shows “just how dangerous the situation is getting across our NHS hospitals”.
It comes as Downing Street hit out at the British Medical Association (BMA), saying that the doctors’ union must reverse its “astounding” plans to strike – plans it said would inflict “pain” on patients.
An average of 2,660 flu patients were in hospital each day last week, up from 1,717 the previous week. At this point last year, the number stood at 1,861 patients, while in 2023 it was just 402.
Weekly flu numbers in England peaked at 5,408 patients last winter and reached 5,441 over the winter of 2022-23, the highest level since the pandemic.
The NHS national medical director, Professor Meghana Pandit, said: “With record demand for A&E and ambulances and an impending resident doctors’ strike, this unprecedented wave of superflu is leaving the NHS facing a worst-case scenario for this time of year – with staff being pushed to the limit to keep providing the best possible care for patients.
“The number of patients in the hospital with flu is extremely high for this time of year. Even worse, it continues to rise, and the peak is not in sight yet, so the NHS faces an extremely challenging few weeks ahead.”
Her warnings come as multiple hospitals have already declared critical incidents, meaning they cannot function as usual, due to the increased pressure on A&E and other hospital services.
The influx of hospital patients has largely been driven by the spread of a new “super” strain of flu, called H3N2, which can cause more severe symptoms and is different from the strain that this year’s vaccines were designed to protect against.
The latest wave gripping the UK comes as resident doctors, formerly known as junior doctors, are set to strike next week, despite fresh government attempts to avert the walkout with a last-ditch offer to the BMA, including a plan to ensure that homegrown doctors have priority for speciality training roles.
The health secretary, Wes Streeting, has warned that strikes over Christmas would have a “much different degree of risk” from previous walkouts, adding that he “cannot think of a single other trade union in this country that would behave this way”.
And Sir Keir Starmer has branded the latest action “irresponsible” as he called on members of the union to accept the government’s latest offer.
“It’d be irresponsible [of the] BMA to push through, and I think, for many resident doctors, I think in their heart of hearts they probably don’t want to do this,” he said.
A No 10 spokesperson said: “It’s astonishing that the BMA’s leadership has chosen to inflict this pain on people. But resident doctors now face a choice: continue the damaging industrial action in which everyone loses, or choose more jobs, better career progression, more money in their pockets and an end to strikes.”
The weekly NHS figures for hospital admissions show that there were 106 flu patients in critical care beds in England last week – up from 69 the week prior, and another record for this time of year.
Norovirus-type cases are also up, with an average of 354 hospital beds filled each day last week by patients with diarrhoea and vomiting – up 35 per cent from 263 the previous week.
While beds are filled with patients, the weekly NHS report shows that 11,141 patients, 12 per cent, were delayed by more than an hour in an ambulance waiting to be handed over to A&E – up from 10 per cent the previous week, but lower than at this point last year.
Meanwhile, the NHS 111 service received 446,249 calls last week – up from 424,764 a week earlier.
Responding to the figures, the Royal College of Nursing’s general secretary and chief executive, Professor Nicola Ranger, said: “These figures show just how dangerous the situation is getting across our NHS hospitals. Wards and emergency departments were full to start with, but now a surging flu virus could soon overwhelm them.
“With the peak not even here yet, and corridor care already rife across the NHS, nursing staff are deeply worried about how they will maintain the safety and dignity of patients. We’re clear that treating people in unsafe, non-clinical areas like corridors, store cupboards and offices is not an acceptable response. Ministers need to act to protect patients this winter.”
Resident doctors are due to walk out for five days from next Wednesday in a long-running row over pay and concerns over training places.
The BMA says it will survey members online on Monday about whether the government’s latest deal – which also includes an increase in speciality training posts over the next three years, with 1,000 of them to start next year, and the funding of mandatory examination and Royal College membership fees for resident doctors – is enough to call off the walkout.
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