ACCIDENT and emergency departments across the country are struggling to cope with the demand of patients, with recent figures showing more people than ever are attending – and sometimes, it is not even an emergency.

Across the country, there was a 4.6 per cent increase in A&E visits from 2014-15 to 2015-16, with 20,457,805 people visiting emergency departments in England.

Hospitals have been strained, with operations postponed, patients left waiting on trolleys, and people fit to leave hospital left waiting for care to be available in their homes.

Last week, the Red Cross dubbed the situation a “humanitarian crisis”.

Musgrove Park Hospital and Yeovil Hospital have both been forced to postpone routine operations as a consequence of the high level of demand.

Chard & Ilminster News:

Matthew Bryant, chief operating officer at Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust.

Matthew Bryant, chief operating officer at Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Following a very busy couple of weeks, we are continuing to see high numbers of emergency admissions.

“Anyone coming to our emergency department with more minor illnesses or ailments will face a longer than usual wait as we see and treat people in order of clinical priority.

“We have postponed a number of less clinically urgent procedures and appointments in order to free up beds and staff, and would like to apologise to those affected. We will endeavour to rebook these appointments as soon as possible

“We would like to ask people for their support in helping us to be able to see those coming to us for emergency care in a timely way by accessing other NHS services where possible and appropriate.

“If you do need health advice quickly, but it’s not urgent or an emergency, please contact your GP or local pharmacy, or phone NHS 111, where you will be assessed, given advice and directed straight away to the local service that will help you best.”

The Somerset Clinical Commissioning Group says Taunton and Yeovil hospitals, adult social services, the South Western Ambulance Trust and community health services are working closely together to manage current demand and ensure the smooth admission and discharge of patients who are medical fit to leave hospital.

As an alternative to visiting A&E, health care professionals are urging people to consider the other options before heading to hospital.

Campaigns such as “Think Pharmacy First” aim to encourage people to try other means of healthcare instead of clogging up emergency departments.

Pharmacies, the 111 service, and minor injury units should put a first port-of-call for people needing help.

Chard & Ilminster News:

Rachel Vokes, regional manager for Vocare. 

Rachel Vokes, regional manager for Vocare, warns that people running out of medication is one of the most popular reasons people attend A&E, and that prescription problems can and should be dealt through 111 or at a pharmacy.

She said: “We are urging people to call 111 instead of visiting A&E.

“100 per cent of the people that attend A&E will be seen, but only five-seven per cent of calls to 111 direct people to the emergency department.”

“It is all about getting to the right place on the first try, and that frees up time for people that need to be in A&E.”

Earlier this week Jeremy Hunt, secretary of state of health, scrapped the four-hour promise for all health problems in favour of urgent health problems, stating that no other country in the world has a strict standard for minor injuries or illnesses.

Chard & Ilminster News:

Jeremy Hunt, secretary of state for health. 

He said in the House of Commons: “Only four other countries - New Zealand, Sweden, Australia and Canada - have similar national standards, which are generally less stringent than ours. This government is committed to maintaining and delivering that vital four-hour commitment to patients, but since it was announced in 2000, there are nearly 9 million more visits to our A&Es, up to 30 per cent of which NHS England estimates do not need to be made, and the tide is continuing to rise.

“If we are going to protect our four-hour standard, we need to be clear that it is a promise to sort out all urgent health problems within four hours, but not all health problems, however minor.

“As Professor Keith Willett, NHS England’s medical director for acute care, has said, no country in the world has a standard for all health problems, however small, and if we are to protect services for the most vulnerable, nor can we.”

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine responded to this announcement stating that at least 95 per cent of patients should be seen within four hours.

​The college believes that the figure of non-emergency patients at A&E stands at around 15-20 per cent, not 30 per cent as stated by Mr Hunt.

Chard & Ilminster News:

Dr Mark Porter, British Medical Association council chair. 

Dr Mark Porter, British Medical Association council chair, said:“We already know that we have an overstretched and underfunded NHS that is failing to keep up with rising demand and these figures confirm it is getting worse year on year.

“The system is at breaking point and it’s not just our hospitals that are facing these issues - GPs are conducting millions more consultations every year while also facing a recruitment crisis. A recent BMA survey of GPs found that 84 per cent said that workloads are now so unmanageable it is affecting the delivery of safe patient care.

“So far the government has failed to grasp the seriousness of the situation. It must urgently look at the long-term funding, capacity and recruitment issues facing the system as a whole if we are to get to grips with the pressures the NHS faces year in, year out, but which are compounded during the winter months.”