Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust steps down critical incident in Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital and the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester

An NHS trust has this morning (Monday) stepped down the critical incident it declared in two of its hospitals last week.

Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust declared the critical incident on Tuesday, January 7, due to sustained pressures at Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital and the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester.

The trust stated that its decision to step down the six-day incident “reflects an improving situation helped by the tremendous efforts of the public who have responded to the message that they should only attend the emergency department if in need of critical or lifesaving care, as well as Hampshire Hospitals’ staff, and wider system partners.”

However, due to the ongoing impact of a severe strain of flu having an impact on the local population, the trust continues to urge those who seek non-lifesaving medical attention to contact 111, speak to their pharmacist or GP, attend minor injury units or undertake self-care rather than attending hospital.

Anyone attending either hospital’s emergency department will likely face an “extremely long” wait.

The trust has also repeated its request to the public to assist the situation by collecting friends or loved ones who can be discharged.

Hampshire Hospitals’ COO Andy Hyett said: “We are enormously grateful to the public for the way in which they are supporting our staff by only coming to the emergency department if seriously ill or injured.

“Treating those who need us most is our priority and the public’s efforts is making a real difference.

“Although stepping down from a critical incident is positive and testament to the hard work of our staff and the support of our system partners, we are not out of the woods yet and are unlikely to be for many weeks to come.

“We ask that people continue seeking treatment and healthcare elsewhere unless very unwell.”

This is the second critical incident the trust has declared within the space of a month, with both hospitals in Basingstoke and Winchester being placed on the same alert from the afternoon of December 16 to the morning of December 18 last year.