Critical incidents declared at three major Midlands NHS Trusts in under two weeks
Critical incidents have been declared at four NHS Trusts in the Midlands in the past two weeks.
University Hospitals of North Midlands (UHNM) are the most recent to declare the status, along with Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH).
The critical incidents have been announced due to overcrowding in emergency departments and delays in discharging patients.
The status was also announced last week by Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Nottingham University Hospitals.
Nottingham University Hospitals
There are nearly 200 people in the Queen's Medical Centre's emergency department - 88 of which are waiting to be admitted to wards.
Meanwhile, 160 patients remain in the hospital, despite having been discharged for more than 24 hours.
Nottingham University Hospitals also announced a critical incident on Thursday evening (29 December) - their second in 10 days.
The NHS Trust said they continue to face sustained pressures and remain in a critical incident, due to overcrowding in their emergency departments.
They said: "Our staff are working tirelessly to care for patients, but the demand on our services is causing very long waits for patients to be seen in our Emergency Department (ED) and then to be admitted to a ward."
"Our emergency services remain open and you should continue to come forward as normal in emergency and life-threatening cases - when someone is seriously ill or injured, or their life is at risk."They are also prioritising the most unwell and calling for relatives of those already discharged to collect them, to help free up hospital beds.
Michelle Rhodes, Chief Nurse said: “With the extreme demand on our beds, it is vital that patients can leave hospital safely and quickly when they are medically fit to be discharged.
"This is not only beneficial for the individual, but means that we can transfer a patient from our Emergency Department to one of our wards, reducing waiting times and overcrowding."“Friends and family play an important role in helping get patients home where their recovery can continue more quickly in their own surroundings."
University Hospitals of North Midlands
UHNM declared the critical incident on Friday afternoon (30 October) and are prioritising the sickest patients and are expecting some patients waiting times to exceed 12 hours.
Dr Matthew Lewis, UHNM Medical Director, said: “We are currently experiencing extremely high demand for all our services.
"Both Royal Stoke University Hospital and County Hospital in Stafford have been under severe and sustained pressure over the Christmas period and this challenging situation is likely to continue into the New Year bank holiday period.
“We have therefore have taken the decision to declare a critical incident. This allows us to be able to take additional steps to maintain safe services for our patients."
“I would like to thank our staff for their on-going efforts during this extremely challenging period and their public for their understanding and co-operation.”
What is the advice being given to patients?
Assess the severity their condition and call 111 if it is not life-threatening or urgent
Visit a pharmacy for recommendations on medication
Visit local minor injuries units instead of A&E