Busy December for Greater Manchester hospitals

Date published: 06 January 2020

December 2019 was a very busy time for local hospitals, with both high bed occupancy levels and a high number of people self-presenting to A&E departments.

Bed occupancy across Greater Manchester between 16 and 22 December was at 93.6%, up from 93.4% the previous week (9 and 15 December) but lower than the 93.7% at the start of the month (2 and 8 December).

There were 28,027 attendances at A&E at Greater Manchester hospitals between 16 and 22 December. This is slightly lower than the previoud week (28,244 for 9-15 December), but still higher than the same week in 2018 (26,270).

In the first week of December, there were 29,604 attendances at Greater Manchester A&E departments.

A&E being busy does not mean that the system is not coping; it is expected to be busy at this time of year with increased demand.

A&E diverts

For the week of 16-22 December, there were eight A&E diverts for ambulance patients from and to other hospitals within Greater Manchester with six being between hospitals in the same trusts.

These were Wythenshawe Hospital and Manchester Royal Infirmary (Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust), and Fairfield General Hospital to both Royal Oldham Hospital and North Manchester General Hospital (Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust).

For the week of 9-15 December, there were four A&E diverts for ambulance patients from and to other hospitals within the region.

Two were between hospitals in the same trusts: Manchester Royal Infirmary to Wythenshawe Hospital (Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust), and the Royal Oldham Hospital to Fairfield General Hospital (Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust).

There were two diverts between hospitals in different trusts: Stepping Hill Hospital (Stockport NHS Foundation Trust) to Manchester Royal Infirmary (Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust) and from Royal Bolton Hospital (Bolton NHS Foundation Trust) to Royal Albert Edward Infirmary (Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust).

For the first week of December (2-8), there were six A&E diverts for ambulance patients from and to other hospitals within Greater Manchester. They were all between hospitals in the same trusts. Five were between Wythenshawe Hospital and Manchester Royal Infirmary Hospital (Manchester University Foundation Trust) and one between Royal Oldham Hospital and North Manchester General Hospital (Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust).

Diverts from one hospital to another are a well-established way of managing very busy periods at hospitals and excludes people in extreme clinical need, meaning that these people are not travelling further for urgent care.

In Greater Manchester, there is a 24/7 operational hub, which has access to live information from acute trusts across Greater Manchester; this helps the health and care system react to issues quickly, locally and deflect pressure before issues arise.

A&E closures

There were no A&E closures between 2 and 22 December.

Emergency 999 and NHS 111 calls

Across Greater Manchester, the number of 999 ambulance calls between 9 and 22 December totalled 29,632 resulting in 18,273 incidents. It is common to receive multiple calls for one incident, particularly those in public places.

For the same time period, 68,408 NHS 111 calls were made, and a further 10,508 people in Greater Manchester used the NHS 111 online service to assess their own health symptoms, being directed to an appropriate and nearest NHS service for their needs.

Greater Manchester currently has one of the highest rates in England for ambulance calls dealt with by the “hear and treat” method through a phone call with no need to send an ambulance.

Less serious calls are diverted by North West Ambulance Service to an out of hours clinical assessment service, resulting in a reduction of ambulance attendances to emergency departments.

Jon Rouse CBE, chief officer for Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership, said: “Winter pressures will continue to place high demands on all our hospitals and staff over the coming weeks, so please consider the alternatives. Our new Greater Manchester Service Finder is a simple way to find both health and care services close to home – it’s available from app stores and online at findnhsservices.org.uk.

“On behalf of Greater Manchester, I’d like to say thank you to everyone who will be working in our health and care services across the Christmas period to keep us safe and well, their dedication is truly appreciated.”

Helpful advice

Visit www.nhs.uk/staywell for helpful tips and advice. Locate your nearest pharmacy and read specific information on how to look after yourself if you’re over 65, pregnant, a parent, a carer, or have a long-standing health condition.

The website at www.111.nhs.uk helps people access on-the-spot, immediate healthcare advice with their smartphone, tablet or computer. The online assessment process takes only about three minutes to complete.

Recent changes mean that Greater Manchester can offer more out-of-hours GP appointments throughout the winter. So wherever you live in the region, you’ll be able to get an evening or weekend appointment with a doctor or health professional in your local area (this may not be at your own GP but at one of 50 neighbourhood hubs). Visit www.gmhsc.org.uk/moregphours/ or call your local practice.

Your local pharmacy is your fastest route to care - visit them at the first sign of illness. These over the counter medical experts can help stop conditions like a cough or cold from getting worse. There are around 100 ‘100 hour’ high street pharmacies, meaning people have even more access to healthcare advice during the evenings and at the weekend.

Emergency dental care is available in every area of Greater Manchester. Ring your local practice if you need help and a number will redirect you to the right place.

All those eligible should get their free flu jab. These are people in the ‘at risk’ groups – people aged over 65, people with long-term health conditions like asthma and diabetes, pregnant women, people with a body mass index (BMI) of over 40 and carers. A nasal flu vaccination is also offered to children free of charge. Parents of toddlers aged two or three can get them vaccinated at their GP surgery. School children from reception up to year 4 receive their vaccination at school, which parents give their consent for.

Keep warm this winter and help to prevent colds, flu and more serious health problems, such as heart attacks, strokes, pneumonia and depression. Cold weather can be harmful. Heat your home to at least 18°C. People should also look out for their family, friends and neighbours who may be vulnerable over winter.