Winter pressures: Black Country and Staffordshire NHS trusts speak out on 'significant pressures' as probe launched into patient deaths
We speak to health chiefs at NHS trusts in the Black Country and Staffordshire as teams react to winter pressurs and two die while waiting for ambulances
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Accident and emergency units in the Black Country and Staffordshire are battling high demand amid rising respiratory related cases and a so-called quad-demic relating to influenza, Covid-19, norovirus and syncytial virus (RSV).
Julian Hobbs, medical director of The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust which runs Russells Hall said: “The NHS in the Black Country is facing significant pressures from a combination of winter viruses, but our hospitals are responding well with staff working tirelessly to balance urgent care and planned treatments with the use of innovative solutions like virtual wards.
"We urge people to get vaccinated from flu and use NHS 111 to get access to the right care and help us prioritise those with the most urgent need.”
All Black Country trusts will be introducing a 45-minute ambulance handover system at the emergency departments between 8am and 8pm this week in a bid to reduce queues and waiting times.
Stafford's County Hospital which is part of the University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust - is among several to declare critical incidents due to high demand.
The Staffordshire trust which also treats trauma patients from the Black Country area remained at "critical" levels on January 8. While Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust reverted to normal status on New Year's Eve after declaring a two-day critical incident.
