The NHS is setting up 'war rooms' as chiefs say the service is preparing for what could be England's 'toughest winter on record'. But exactly what they will look like in Greater Manchester is yet to be revealed.
What could be new for Greater Manchester are the rapid response teams promised in the plan.
The 'data-driven' control centres will be '24/7 care traffic control centres', they are expected to be created in every local area. The centres will help the NHS to cope during the high pressure winter months and were announced last week as part of the government's winter preparation plan.
The hubs, led by teams of clinicians and experts, will manage demand and capacity across England by constantly tracking the number of beds available and people attending hospital. Yet, as pressure on the NHS ascends beyond an already difficult summer, staff wait to see just how the new policy will help.
Respiratory infections, including covid, flu - dubbed the 'twindemic' - along with pneumonia and acute bronchitis are expected to be one of the most significant winter pressures on the NHS, with modelling suggesting they could occupy up to half of all NHS beds this winter.
The new 24-hour control system marks the first time all activity and performance across the NHS will have been monitored at the same time. It is hoped the centres will make it easier and quicker for decisions, such as if hospitals need extra assistance or if ambulances need to be diverted, to be made.
However, Greater Manchester has already had a version of this system in place for a number of years. With the help of devolution, the region was able to gain more control of its health care services.
Greater Manchester set up 'mutual aid', where hospital capacity would be monitored and any struggling centres would be placed on 'divert'. That means that patients coming in via ambulance, for example, would be redirected to another nearby hospital until the centre under pressure returned to normal.
The Manchester Evening News understands that as the new policy has only just been announced, NHS teams are now working to try and figure out how it will work in practice.
The model was seen as a success in Greater Manchester, with other regions expressing wishes to try it out, the M.E.N. has been told by senior NHS sources. But currently, NHS hospitals in Greater Manchester are struggling even with mutual aid in place, as beds run scarce and ambulances are 'treated as extra wards', with staff forced to wait hours outside watching over deteriorating patients.
However, the rapid response teams promised in the plan will be entirely new for our region. Teams 'across the country' will help people who have fallen at home to prevent unnecessary hospital trips, according to NHS England, which believes this expansion could see about 55,000 ambulance trips freed up to treat other patients each year.
Under the plans, care providers will also be given more support to deal with falls, with around two in five hospital admissions from care homes currently related to patients falling over.
On top of that, NHS chiefs have vowed to roll out around-the-clock access to professional mental health advice within ambulance services to help give more people access to the correct community support. The service is also promising it is hiring more 111 and emergency 999 call handlers, as well as frantically trying to increase the numbers of beds available.
Last week, the Manchester Evening News broke the story of one elderly patient who died in the back of an ambulance after waiting outside Fairfield General Hospital’s A&E for three hours.
In a letter to all NHS foundation trusts, signed by the health service's chief executive, Amanda Pritchard, chief financial officer Julian Kelly and chief operating officer David Sloman, staff have been told "the coming weeks and months will be difficult".
Ms Pritchard, said: “Winter comes hot on the heels of an extremely busy summer – and with the combined impact of flu, covid and record NHS staff vacancies – in many ways, we are facing more than the threat of a ‘twindemic’ this year.
“So it is right that we prepare as much as possible – the NHS is going further than it ever has before in anticipation of a busy winter, and today we have set out further plans to step up these preparations - building on our existing plans to boost capacity set out in August this year.
“Whether it be new services to support people who have fallen at home, hubs to treat respiratory infections, or system control centres helping us to navigate pressures across the entire country, every one of these initiatives will make a real impact on the ground – helping to relieve pressure on frontline staff as well as seeing patients quickly and directing them to where they can receive the best possible care.
“Vaccines remain an important part of our defence this winter – everyone who is eligible has the power to protect themselves from both flu and Covid – so please do book in today if you haven’t already.”
Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, added: “This winter could be the toughest on record for the NHS, which is exactly why services are working together early on to make sure patients get the care they need, where they need it most.
“With falls leading to thousands of ambulance call-outs and admissions to A&E, it is vital that the NHS uses its limited resources to best effect as this will provide value for money to taxpayers and improve patient experience.”
The national booking service is now open to everyone who is eligible, including anyone aged 50 and over.
READ NEXT:
- As the nights draw in, women and girls in Manchester feel a familiar sense of dread
- 'I ended up homeless after winning £127,000 and blowing every penny'
- Woman's 'terrifying' 6am Bolt taxi journey amid claims car stank of cannabis and driver reached 70mph
- Pensioner, 71, exposed himself from his window to schoolgirls as bus stopped outside his home - but insists "I'm innocent
- 'I was dragged off the street by men checking my hijab... it happens every day'
