Covid, flu and winter vomiting bug are putting county's hospitals under extreme pressure

A “tidal wave” “quad-demic” from the vomiting bug norovirus, flu, Covid-19 and respiratory viruses are putting Derbyshire’s healthcare system under extreme pressure.

As of the latest NHS England data there are 34 patients in Derbyshire hospitals with flu and 40 beds are closed due to norovirus, while 14 patients have Covid-19 and six staff are off work with Covid.

Higher numbers of patients have been in Derbyshire hospitals with the illnesses in the past two weeks, with peaks of 37 Covid patients and 94 beds out of action due to vomiting bugs.

A broader health check of Derbyshire’s NHS shows a system under strain with East Midlands Ambulance Service and the University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust both on their highest level of alert – OPEL 4.

By the NHS’s definition, this means there is “increased potential for patient care and safety to be compromised” with organisations “unable to deliver comprehensive care”.

Joined Up Care Derbyshire information relating to EMAS details that in the past day the average handover time from patients being offloaded from ambulances is an hour and seven minutes at Royal Derby Hospital, with 39 occasions on which patients waited an hour or more to enter the hospital from an ambulance and 88 total occasions when patients were held in the ambulance to wait for a hospital bed – this totals more than 94 hours of “lost” ambulance time.

The organisation says that at Chesterfield Royal Hospital over the last day the average handover time for ambulances was 20 minutes, with one patient waiting over an hour to be transferred and 12 patients being held in the ambulance to wait – with a total of eight hours of “lost” ambulance time.

Meanwhile, it shows the Derby and Burton hospital trust detailing issues with emergency department admissions, “minimal capacity”, including in intensive care, and discharge delays as problems push it to its highest alert level.

Within the trust there are 71 patients who are medically fit to be sent home but are waiting for discharge, it shows.

It also shows that at the trust there is currently a 16-hour wait to be seen in A&E and a queue of 38 patients in the medical assessment unit. 

In addition, 279 people were not seen within four hours at A&E, with 25 patients in the last day waiting more than 12 hours.

Information provided by Joined Up Derbyshire shows there are 45 beds available at Chesterfield Royal out of 515 while there are 120 beds available at Derby and Burton out of 1,021.

Joined Up Care Derbyshire shows Chesterfield Royal Hospital is currently on OPEL 2 along with Derby City Council social care, with Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust and Derbyshire County Council social care on OPEL 3.

Four GP surgeries have also raised their alert level to OPEL 4, one in Amber Valley, one in Bolsover and North East Derbyshire, one in Chesterfield and one in Derby, while 29 are at OPEL 3, with three in Amber Valley, seven in Bolsover and North East Derbyshire, five in Chesterfield, nine in Derby, three in Erewash and two in South Derbyshire.

Michelle Veitch, chief operating officer at Chesterfield Royal, said: “We’re incredibly busy and managing even more patients’ year-on-year. It is a challenge, and our teams are working tirelessly to manage the increase and ensure that every patient receives the best possible care. 

“We are here for when our communities need us, and I’m proud that we continue to prioritise those with the greatest need – whether that be our cancer wait times or other critical areas. As a trust, we recognise the pressures and have solutions to support our colleagues with additional capacity. However, we need people to only come to the hospital if truly needed and to support getting home – and getting their loved ones home – as soon as possible.”

The trust says it is running at an average bed occupancy of 97 per cent, compared to 97.5 per cent last December.

A spokesperson for NHS Derby and Derbyshire said: “Our urgent and emergency system is under sustained pressure.

“In recent weeks we have seen ambulance response times and handover times at hospital emergency departments are longer than we would want them to be, and waiting times in emergency departments are longer than we would want them to be, particularly for those patients who have been admitted and are awaiting a bed.

“Patients and people who work in the health and care system can help prevent infections by getting your vaccination for flu, Covid-19 and RSV, if you are eligible.

“Vaccines offer the best protection from becoming seriously unwell this winter.

“They save lives and help ease the strain on the NHS during the difficult winter period ahead.

“Patients and visitors to hospitals can take simple actions to help prevent infection from spreading.

“Norovirus is very contagious, but you can take steps to protect yourself and others.

“If you have the norovirus bug please stay away from work, school, and care homes, and don’t visit a hospital unless advised to by NHS 111 or another NHS professional, because the infection can spread quickly. You should stay home until 48 hours after your symptoms clear.

“Help stop norovirus spreading by washing your hands with soap and warm water regularly. Alcohol gels won’t kill norovirus.”

Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS national medical director, said: “The tidal wave of flu cases and other seasonal viruses hitting hospitals is really concerning for patients and for the NHS – the figures are adding to our quad-demic worries.

“While the NHS has plans in place to manage additional demand over the busy winter period, with one week left to book your vaccine, I cannot stress enough the importance of getting booked in to protect yourself against serious illness and to avoid festive flu.

“Despite the extreme winter pressures early in the year, the figures out today show further improvements towards boosting NHS productivity – not only is the covid backlog reducing but more people than ever before received treatment, a faster cancer diagnosis or a diagnostic check – which shows the truly remarkable efforts from staff.

“We will work with government to bring the waits for care even further with the 10-year health plan next year helping us to transform services for the future, but as the incredibly busy winter continues, I would encourage everyone to remember to use NHS 111 in the first instance and only use A&E and 999 in life-threatening emergencies.”

A UHDB spokesperson said: “Flu and other seasonal viruses are absolutely affecting our hospitals, and we saw more than 70 people with respiratory illnesses in hospital beds at the start of this month – which equates to around two and half wards’ worth of patients.

“We continue to see a sharp rise infections and for some people these illnesses can be very serious, so we would really encourage everyone eligible to take up the offer of winter vaccines in the next few days, while they are still available, to help them stay healthy.

“To help reduce the spread of winter illnesses and to protect our patients, we would ask potential visitors to stay at home if they have symptoms of seasonal illnesses, and to make sure that they utilise thorough hand-washing – whether at hospital or at home – which can also help to slow down the spread of winter viruses.”