Hospitals across England remain under immense pressure following their busiest week of the winter so far, according to the NHS.
Despite opening an additional 1,300 beds, only 6% of nearly 104,000 total hospital beds were unoccupied, a drop from 7.2% the previous week.
While flu cases remain significantly higher than last year—3.5 times greater, to be exact—there are signs of improvement, with numbers dropping from their peak.
NHS England reported an average of 4,929 beds occupied by flu patients in the week ending 12 January, a 9% decrease from the 5,408 the week prior.
Several hospitals, including those in Liverpool, Birmingham, and Plymouth, have recently declared critical incidents due to the strain from flu-related admissions.
Professor Julian Redhead, the NHS National Clinical Director for Urgent and Emergency Care, cautioned that the situation remains challenging.
“While it is encouraging that flu cases are no longer increasing, hospitals are still under significant strain. Winter viruses are much higher than usual for this time of year, and combined with the cold snap and difficulties discharging patients, hospitals are absolutely jampacked,” he said.
Adding to the pressure, 650 patients were hospitalised with norovirus last week, marking a 4% rise compared to the previous week and a staggering 44% increase from last year.
COVID-related admissions also remained concerning, with 1,112 people in hospital. Combined, winter viruses accounted for 5,851 occupied beds last week—a decrease of 8% from the prior week but considerably higher than the 2,169 recorded this time last year.
Vaccination efforts have been robust, with approximately 29 million flu, RSV, and COVID jabs administered this season. While the national booking system has now closed, eligible individuals can still access free vaccinations via their GP or local pharmacies.
In terms of ambulance handover times at A&E, there has been a slight improvement, with the average time dropping to just over 41 minutes, compared to nearly 54 minutes the previous week. However, this still falls short of the 38-minute average recorded last year.
Despite these small gains, NHS staff continue to face enormous challenges as winter pressures persist, highlighting the ongoing strain on the healthcare system.
