Parents have been warned of spike in flu cases among children as the country tackles ‘quad-demic’ just before Christmas.
The increase in flu could indicate a rise in demand for adults “further down the line”, an expert has now warned.
Officials warned that hospitals are dealing with a “quad-demic” of disease, with rising levels of flu, Covid-19, norovirus and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).
The number of people in hospital with flu has quadrupled compared with last year, according to figures for the NHS in England.
An average of 1,099 flu patients were in hospital beds each day in the week to December 1, including 39 in critical care.
A record number of people are occupying hospital beds for this time of year because of a variety of illnesses and injuries, with England’s provision about 95% full.
Saffron Cordery, interim chief executive of NHS Providers, said the NHS is “bracing” for a challenging winter.
Ms Cordery told BBC Breakfast: “Quad-demic – it’s an awful word, but it does mean that we’ve got four different viruses running around at the moment – we’ve got flu, we’ve got Covid, we’ve got norovirus and RSV, and all of those coming together makes it incredibly challenging”.
“I think there are two things that it does: one is it really increases demand for services, particularly, I would say, GP services, but also A&E services.
“And of course, those staff who are working in our hospitals are also those who are living in our communities who are affected by the same viruses, or their children are affected by those viruses, so it does, of course, reduce the number of staff who are available to work.
“Those two things coming together is what puts enormous pressure on services on the front line in winter.”
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She added: “We’ve seen a real rise in, a spike in, the number of children who are suffering from flu in particular, and often that’s a predictor of a later wave coming in adults.
“So it’s likely that we might see rising demand in adults further down the line.
“So yes, we are bracing ourselves, I think, for a challenging winter ahead.”
Health leaders have urged people eligible for a free flu jab to get their vaccination “as soon as possible”, with the NHS booking system due to close in around two weeks.
NHS national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis said last week: “The NHS is busier than it has ever been before, heading into winter, with flu and norovirus numbers in hospital rising sharply, and we are still only at the start of December, so we expect pressure to increase and there is a long winter ahead of us.
“For a while there have been warnings of a ‘tripledemic’ of Covid, flu and RSV this winter, but with rising cases of norovirus this could fast become a ‘quad-demic’, so it’s important that if you haven’t had your Covid or flu jab to follow the lead of millions of others and come forward and get protected as soon as possible.”