Flu pressure forces University Hospitals Birmingham to declare critical incident

University Hospitals Birmingham have declared a critical incident because of extreme pressure on their services, partly down to the number of patients with flu.

The NHS Foundation Trust called the numbers 'exceptional' with 311 patients suffering from the disease.

They said that mask-wearing in all departments has been introduced.

They also expanded capacity in their wards and emergency departments. Despite that, they said that A&E remains overcrowded.

The advice is to only attend if you are in a life-threatening condition or an emergency.

If you do attend with less-serious conditions, the Trust said you may be redirected to other health services, including NHS 11 or a pharmacy.

The hospitals that are covered by University Hospitals Birmingham include: Good Hope Hospital, Heartlands Hospital, Solihull Hospital and Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham.

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