The NHS is in the grip of an ‘unacceptably awful’ winter crisis amid skyrocketing flu admissions and rising cases of dangerous sick bugs.
A ‘quad-demic’ of flu, norovirus, respiratory illness and Covid has led to warnings the health service is coming under relentless pressure.
Doctors warned that the dire situation is leading to ‘excess deaths that shouldn’t be happening’.
And with the winter weather set to worsen, experts have warned those with health conditions to take extra care.
The country’s beleaguered health service is battling ‘extraordinary’ levels of flu, with the number of admissions tripling on last year.
Admissions in Scotland caused by flu have increased by 12 per cent in just a week, although only a ‘small number’ of deaths have been reported.
Cases of Covid, norovirus and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are also piling pressure on A&E departments across the country.
There were 1,537 emergency hospital admissions in Scottish hospitals for flu last week, up sharply from the 436 in the same week last winter.
Scotland’s hospitals are struggling to keep up with the recent surge in flu admissions
Dr Adrian Boyle, President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, warned the rise in flu admissions is causing ‘excess deaths that shouldn’t be happening’
In England and Wales, the scale of the crisis was laid bare yesterday as it emerged an average of 4,469 flu patients were in hospital beds each day last week – 3.5 times higher than at the same time last year – including 211 in critical care.
Public Health Scotland has classed the current flu levels as ‘extraordinary’ and Health Secretary Neil Gray said the NHS ‘continues to face significant winter pressures’.
The situation is similar across the UK as a tidal wave of flu and other winter viruses hits the nation.
Dr Adrian Boyle, President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, warned patients and staff are struggling.
When asked on BBC 4’s Today Programme about the current situation in the NHS he said: ‘We’re certainly hearing that it’s very difficult for both patients and staff, and what we’re seeing is that ambulances are frequently stuck outside emergency department and our emergency departments are full.
‘It’s just unacceptably awful, and it’s not the sort of environment we want to be working in.
‘There’s an enormous amount of avoidable harm, and what this means is excess deaths that shouldn’t be happening.’
Medics have warned flu has come ‘early and hard’ this year and is putting extra pressure on an already-stretched services.
Over 1,800 Scots have been hospitalised with a range of winter illnesses in the last week, piling massive strain on emergency department and wards.
Cases of the winter vomiting bug norovirus are also higher than usual, confirming that a ‘quad-demic’ is hitting the NHS.
Public Health Scotland has reported a ‘steep increase’ in the number of people testing positive for flu in recent weeks with 2,886 new cases in the last week of December.
And total hospital admissions for flu, Covid-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) combined have risen by six per cent to 1,878.
Meanwhile confirmed norovirus cases rose to a total of 1,927 for 2024 – compared with the annual average of 1,311.
The Scottish Government has convened a number of meetings on NHS winter preparedness in recent weeks, chaired by First Minister John Swinney to plot a way through.
Health Secretary Neil Gray said: ‘The NHS continues to face significant winter pressures, including cases of Influenza A, which remain very high.’
‘I am enormously grateful to all those working in health and social care settings for their extraordinary efforts over the busy festive period.
‘I want to thank the public, too, for taking heed of messages about accessing the right care in the right place, and taking steps to help slow the spread of infection.’
The Health Secretary added that all those eligible for vaccinations should take up the offer.
The extent of flu can differ from one year to the next due to the severity of the strains circulating, the level of vaccination in the community, and the weather.
Vaccination offers the best protection against serious illness from flu, but more than two thirds of Scots under-65 who are eligible to be vaccinated on the NHS due to underlying health conditions have not yet taken up the jag.
Hospitals are experiencing ward pressures, which are having a knock-on effect of delays for ambulance patients getting into A&E.
This week there were queues of ambulances outside hospitals including Dr Gray’s Hospital in Elgin.
A spokesman for NHS Grampian said: ‘We are continuing to care for an increasing number of patients in hospital with flu.
‘This is having a knock-on impact on flow and the situation in our hospitals, and in community settings across Grampian, remains pressured.’
There were 1,537 emergency hospital admissions in Scottish hospitals for flu last week
UK Health Secretary Wes Streeting said flu was putting the NHS under extra pressure, adding: ‘This Government has ended the strikes so staff are on the front line this winter rather than the picket line, introduced the new RSV vaccine, and put immediate extra investment into the NHS.’
‘But we have been honest from day one that the status quo isn’t good enough.
‘We are investing in and reforming our NHS, and grasping the nettle of social care reform, to finally break out of the cycle of annual winter crises, because there is no solution to the crisis in the NHS that doesn’t involve a solution to the social care crisis.’
And as the Met Office warns of extreme cold weather with snow and ice over the next few days, health charity, Asthma + Lung UK Scotland, is urging those with lung conditions to take extra care.
Joseph Carter, Head of Asthma + Lung UK Scotland, said: ‘As the temperatures get colder across Scotland, your risk of ending up in A&E doubles in winter if you have a lung condition.
‘There are steps you can take to protect your lungs in cold weather. When outside, breathing through your nose can help warm up the air, as can wearing a mask or loosely wrapping a scarf around your nose and mouth if comfortable.’