Patients asked to avoid busy South West A&Es unless condition is 'life threatening'

People are still being advised to avoid the Accident and Emergency department at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital this morning. Credit: PA

People are still being advised to avoid the Accident and Emergency department at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital.

The Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust tweeted yesterday morning (September 1) that the A&E was 'really busy' and was only due to get busier.

They urged people to avoid unless their condition was 'serious or life threatening'.

It was also reported that the wait time at nearby Cheltenham General Hospital had risen to three and a half hours.

Leaked documents revealed plans to close Cheltenham's A&E department in August, but after widespread outcry from residents and local MP Alex Chalk, the plans were delayed.

Sports presenter Jill Douglas also tweeted her dislike for the plans after spending time at the A&E on Sunday.

Campaigners argue if Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Trust went ahead with the closure, more people would be forced to use Gloucester Royal's emergency department - placing more strain on its already busy A&E.

However the Trust say it has no plans to close to service, but it needed to "think about how services could be provided in the future".

Health bosses say they have seen a 7% increase in the number of patients year on year in the emergency departments across the two hospitals.

They added up to a third of those people could be seen elsewhere.

The A&E service is currently only active during the day.
The hospital's emergency department has been closed overnight since July 2017.

Elsewhere in the region, Weston General Hospital was also advising people to avoid its A&E, and instead, call 111 or visit a pharmacist.

West NHS Trust claimed the hospital was 'very busy'.

Currently the emergency department is only open during the day time.