Flu patients in East of England hospitals up five-fold on 2023 as figures show pressure on NHS

  • Anglia
The number of flu patients in the region's hospitals has skyrocketed and ambulance handover times have also risen significantly. Credit: PA Images
Ambulance handover times in the East of England were almost double the national average during Christmas week. Credit: PA Images

The number of patients being treated for flu in hospitals in the East of England has increased seven-fold since November, according to NHS data.

On average there were 441 flu patients in the region's hospitals every day in the week ending 29 December, compared to 62 in the last week of November.

This also marked a five-fold increase compared to the same week in December 2023.

The East of England has seen a bigger increase than England as a whole, with the average daily number of flu patients nationally having risen by 3.5 times compared to the last week of December 2023 and four times compared to the last week of November 2024.

The UK Health Security Agency has issued cold weather health alerts for England, with temperatures predicted to drop below freezing, and the NHS is also experiencing an increase in norovirus and RSV cases compared to 2023.

The East also faced longer ambulance handover times than the national average during Christmas week, at 49 minutes compared to 27 minutes.

It took an average of 1 hour 20 minutes to hand over ambulance patients on 29 December, with the longest wait of 3 hours 13 minutes at the Princess Alexandra in Harlow, Essex and the shortest of 21 minutes at Milton Keynes.

The new figures lay bare the challenges facing the NHS this winter, with the East of England Ambulance Service having moved to the highest alert level and some hospitals restricting visitors or banning them completely due to rising demand.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the government was acting to "break out of the cycle" of winter crises, adding: "We have been honest from day one that the status quo isn't good enough.

"We are investing in and reforming our NHS and grasping the nettle of social care reform."

On Christmas Eve, 40% more patients were discharged than the average for the week before and the NHS also introduced 24-hour coordination centres and support for frequent A&E users.

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