United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust - which runs Grantham Hospital - declares 'critical incident' due to 'significant pressures'
Hospital bosses have declared a 'critical incident' as they face 'significant pressures' on services.
United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust (ULHT) - which runs Grantham, Boston and Lincoln - says it was forced to act due to 'exceptionally high' levels of demand.
National media reports suggested that there were 73 patients in Boston Pilgrim Hospital's emergency department yesterday morning, with 27 waiting for beds and the longest wait being more than 24 hours. In Lincoln, the longest wait reportedly exceeded 35 hours.
Hospital bosses did not deny that these reports were accurate when asked by this paper.
Declaring a critical incident means that the hospitals are under extreme pressure and may not be able to run as normal. It is understood staff from non-clinical areas are being redeployed to help cope with the issue.
ULHT Chief Executive Andrew Morgan said: “Our hospitals are continuing to see exceptionally high levels of demand for our services, particularly in our Emergency Departments.
“Many of these individuals are very unwell and require further treatment, but there remains significant challenges in the number of available beds across our hospitals- a situation that is also reflected nationally across the NHS.
“We continue to do all we can with partner health and care organisations to ensure care is available for those who need it and those who are medically fit for discharge can return home or to another place of care quickly and safely.
“Our colleagues are working exceptionally hard to ensure the safe delivery of care in these challenging circumstances and I thank them for their continued efforts.”
What NHS chiefs are asking you to do
Health bosses have asked the public to do the following to help ease the pressure:
*Only call 999 or attend A&E departments for serious accidents and for genuine emergencies.
*When you need urgent medical care but it’s not an emergency, visit NHS 111 online or call NHS111 for advice on how to get the care you need at any time of day or night.
*For other non-urgent cases, when you need medical advice and it’s not an emergency, speak to your GP practice or a pharmacist
A spokesman added: "We know that most patients want to return home from hospital as soon as possible, especially at this time of year. If your relative is due to be discharged from hospital and needs to be collected, please do so as early as possible.
"Patients can often return home sooner if they are collected rather than waiting for hospital transport. This will help our teams and free up a hospital bed for someone waiting to be admitted."
