Under-pressure Shrewsbury and Telford hospitals declare 'critical incident'

Shrewsbury & Telford Hospital Trust (SaTH), which runs Princess Royal Hospital in Telford and Royal Shrewsbury Hospital, said that it had stopped some 'non-urgent services' due to the situation.

The trust said that urgent services such as cancer treatment are continuing, but it has encouraged people to consider whether their illness or injury requires A&E treatment.

Despite the situation the trust has asked people to continue to attend appointments unless contacted.

The trust said that the impacts of Covid were still affecting capacity, as well as issues with discharging patients to community care.

A statement from SaTH said: "Our hospitals have been experiencing a prolonged and intense period of pressure due to the exceptionally high levels of demand for the services that we provide, as well as the ongoing impacts from Covid-19.

"We are also continuing to experience issues in discharging medically fit patients due to capacity issues within the local care sector.

"Despite us taking every available option to free up capacity and create additional space, it has become clear today that we need to prioritise our services and so we have declared a critical incident.

"This means that we are pausing a limited number of non-urgent services to allow us to meet the most urgent needs of those we care for.

"Urgent services, including cancer, and time-critical procedures will continue, and we will contact patients directly who may be affected by delays to non-urgent treatment or postponed appointments.

"If you have an appointment in our hospitals but have not been contacted, please continue to attend your appointment as before. Any postponed procedures or appointments will be rescheduled as soon as possible."

The statement continued: "We are very sorry for those impacted by this and we would like to assure you that, despite the challenges faced and some changes to non-urgent appointments, essential services remain fully open for anyone who needs them so if you require urgent medical help, please continue to come forward.

"We would ask that you also continue to help us where you can by ensuring that you are seeking help from the most appropriate health services, and only attending A&E for serious accidents and emergencies. If you are unwell, visit NHS 111 online for 24/7 advice about the most appropriate care for your need."