Plea over high number of flu cases in hospitals

A hospital trust has warned a "high number" of flu and respiratory cases are circulating in its hospitals and community.

South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust urged visitors to wear a mask and wash hands thoroughly and not to come if they had respiratory symptoms.

On Monday, it said the organisation was under extreme pressure.

In a statement about one of its hospitals, Warwick, on Sunday, the trust said it was seeing "extremely high volumes of patients" coming to its emergency department.

The statement had added to care for the people "that need it most, there are likely to be long waits" and stated all services at the hospital were extremely busy.

Staff were working very hard to provide high levels of care, it said, but people were urged to consider if the emergency department was the "right place" for them.

Also on Sunday, members of the public were asked to help protect themselves and others from "increasing numbers" of Covid-19, flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and norovirus cases in the hospital, through measures including wearing masks.

The trust manages Warwick, Stratford and Leamington Spa hospitals and Ellen Badger Hospital in Shipston-on-Stour.

It has asked people to please pick up relatives ready for discharge from its hospitals and ensure their homes are warm and stocked with essentials.

The trust also appealed to members of the public to support the trust so it could provide a bed for "someone that needs it most".

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