NHS could face the worst winter in "recent history" without extra funding

Health bosses are working to reduce the number of visits to A&E and hospital admissions over the winter months as the NHS prepares for increased demand.
Health bosses are working to reduce the number of visits to A&E and hospital admissions over the winter months as the NHS prepares for increased demand.Health bosses are working to reduce the number of visits to A&E and hospital admissions over the winter months as the NHS prepares for increased demand.
Health bosses are working to reduce the number of visits to A&E and hospital admissions over the winter months as the NHS prepares for increased demand.

NHS could face the worst winter in "recent history" without extra funding

Health bosses are working to reduce the number of visits to A&E and hospital admissions over the winter months as the NHS prepares for increased demand.

‘Key messages’ will be spread to Bucks residents to prepare for winter pressures, including encouraging eligible patients to get the flu vaccination and advising people to visit a pharmacist as soon as they start to feel unwell.

The action plan was presented to Bucks County Council’s health and adult social care select committee on Tuesday – with health bosses quizzed on the proposals.

According to national reports England could face its worst winter in recent history if extra cash is not ploughed into the NHS for extra staff and beds.

Chief operating officer at Buckinghamshire NHS Healthcare Trust, Natalie Fox, said healthcare staff will also be focusing on preventing illnesses in a bid to reduce hospital admissions.

She said: “We are expecting high levels of demand and have worked as a system to deal with the increased pressures and think about how we work together to enable us to deal with the pressures we feel we are going to face in the winter months.

“I think what the presentation highlights is there are a number of schemes within the system we are looking at.

“We are looking at how we avoid people attending A&E if they don’t need to attend A&E.

“That’s looking at how we use our GP services, looking at prevention, how we use communication with the public about alternative routes, and also looking at how we work with care homes to make sure people are not brought into hospital when they don’t need to.

“Another area we are looking at is avoiding admissions, so improving pathways for people for different long term conditions.”