15% more people in Mid and South Essex A&Es compared to last year
"It puts a lot of stress on when you have a department that's designed for 70 patients to have 120 patients in it"
The interim managing director of the Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust tells Greatest Hits Radio they're under "significant pressures" as emergency departments across the region that are designed to fit 70 patients are trying to fit in 120.
Compared to this time last year, the number of people in A&E in the region is up 15% on last year.
Emma Gray tells us it's due to "large amounts of sick people that have flu".
"It's been a really difficult few weeks. We've had a significant increase in attendance in ED. Although we've not had many more admissions we've had many more sick people with flu.
"That's meant that when they've stayed in hospital, they stay in hospital longer, meaning our hospitals are really quite full.
"It's meant we have medical patients sitting in wards that are not normal medical wards.
"Quite a lot of our staff have been sick and that's put a lot of pressure on other members of staff", says Emma.
She tells us masks are obligatory for staff and visitors on acute medical wards.
On low risk wards in Mid and South Essex hospitals, masks are not required but are encouraged.
The Trust have also seen a significant rise in the number of ambulance attendances.
She tells us: "it's meant we've had situations where ambulances have been queuing outside.
"Across the whole of East of England, we've been making a real effort to unload those ambulances in a timely fashion and make sure we know who the sickest patient is on an ambulance, so we get them off first".
Across the East of England, hospital admissions of people suffering serious flu symptoms are rising.
Latest published data shows, there are five times more patients in hospital with flu across the East of England than the same time last year.
There were 506 patients in hospital beds at 13 trusts across Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Peterborough and Suffolk, on 28 December.
The previous year there were 103.
The East of England Ambulance Service Trust (EEAST) has also been facing increased pressure, with 53% more ambulances waiting more than an hour to hand over patients compared to last year.
Health services across the East of England have been under growing pressure because of a spike in seasonal viruses.
With high levels of flu circulating within our communities, the NHS across the region are reminding eligible people it’s not too late to book flu vaccinations to protect vulnerable family, friends, and yourself as soon as possible.
Just over 2 million eligible people have been vaccinated this flu season, from 1 September to 15 December, but thousands are still eligible for the free flu vaccination.
If you’re eligible for the vaccine you may also be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccination as well.
The best way to prevent vulnerable family, friends and you catching flu is to get these important winter vaccinations.
Complications from flu can seriously harm vulnerable people.
If you're eligible for an NHS flu vaccine, you can:
- find a pharmacy that offers NHS flu vaccination (if you're aged 18 or over)
- contact your GP surgery to book an appointment