NHS under pressure as norovirus cases increase

A spike in the number of norovirus cases is putting increased pressure on hospitals already facing high levels of demand, according to NHS England.

However, cases of flu appears to have stabilised.

The latest NHS England reports for the week ending Sunday 21 January show a 19 per cent in the number of beds closed - 742 - compared to 621 in the previous week.

The closures add to pressure on hospital capacity, with bed occupancy remaining extremely high at 94.8 per cent, though that was down on the previous week.

A figure of 85 per cent or below is considered the safe standard.

There was a significant fall in the number of ambulance handover delays at A&E departments, with 11,019 people waiting more than the target 30 minutes - more than 1,500 fewer than the previous week.

A NHS England spokesman said: “While levels of flu have stabilised, there has been a spike in the number of norovirus cases which continues to put pressure on busy hospitals and other frontline services.

“And while the NHS is generally coping with ongoing winter demands, the public can continue to play their part by using NHS 111 and pharmacists for advice.”

A spokesman for the Society for Acute Medicine said: “Pressures in the system remain high and it really is offensive and disingenuous to see the Prime Minister only yesterday remain adamant that the NHS was better prepared than ever this winter.

“In our own recent survey, more than three-quarters of clinicians working in acute medicine felt their hospitals were not adequately prepared for winter this year and 28 per cent felt in a worse position than last year.

"The overall mood among healthcare staff is that they remain anxious and depressed and we simply cannot afford a repeat of these dire circumstances again.”