Ten ambulances were spotted queueing outside a Greater Manchester A&E on the hottest day on record. Photos show ambulances waiting in line at Royal Oldham Hospital yesterday, while another eight vehicles queued for Fairfield General Hospital.
It comes as Manchester's health chief warned the heatwave could fuel a rise in excess deaths. Manchester Public Health Director said investigations are being carried into how many excess deaths have been caused by the hottest days on record as temperatures soared to 37C across our region. David Regan drew comparison to the three-week heatwave in France in 2003 which resulted in 15,000 excess deaths - fatalities from all causes that happen above and beyond those expected under "normal" conditions.
READ MORE: Stop turning up to A&E with 'stubbed toes' because you can't get a GP appointment, urges paramedic
Mr Regan said: “The UK Health Security Agency will assess the impacts of not just the last few days but, as we know from the experience in France in 2003, prolonged periods of high temperatures can result in significant excess deaths just as bad winters result in excess deaths.
"So it’s really important that we’ll monitor and track the ongoing impacts over the coming weeks and months of what’s happened in the last few months.”
Pressures have already been building in the NHS in recent weeks as the service is hamstrung by a combination of rising Covid-19 hospitalisations, a subsequent rise in staff absences, and a general increase in the number of seriously ill patients needing help following a string of lockdowns. In recent days, hospitals and GP services have been hit with a slew of heat-related illnesses and injuries putting more strain on a limited workforce.
Hospitals in Greater Manchester have had to issue their own warnings about A&E waiting times, urging people not to come to emergency departments save for a life-threatening incident or emergency. The North West Ambulance Service too raised alarm bells that it could take ambulances longer to reach people due to demand, particularly if the call was non-urgent.
Ambulances have been 'treated as extra wards' with patients being held in vehicles as staff battle to free up beds, say paramedics. Ambulance staff have reported that they have been waiting to handover patients for up to three hours this week.
A North West Ambulance Service spokesperson said: "We are continuing to work closely with hospitals and the wider health systems to mitigate the challenges created by hospital handovers and have implemented a package of measures to review and minimise patient harm.”
Northern Care Alliance, which runs the two hospitals, has been approached for comment.
Primary care, which includes care in the community and GP services, also continued to face sustained increased demand because of ongoing Covid pressures, higher than usual levels of viral respiratory illnesses, a higher prevalence of mental health consultations and the recovery work they were already doing around long-term conditions, heard a Manchester City Council health scrutiny committee this morning.
'The heat exacerbated people with respiratory problems, so primary care did have a higher number of callouts, planned for and expected', Dr Claire Lake, interim Medical Director for the council, reported.
A spokesperson for Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust: “Our Emergency Departments in Oldham and Bury are extremely busy with a high number of attendances. Attendance numbers frequently change but we are consistently working together with NWAS and our system partners to respond to the situation. It is our priority to provide the best possible care for our patients and we commend our Emergency Department colleagues for always striving to do so.”
Read more of today's top stories here
READ NEXT:
- Former town mayor attacked and robbed in his own house after vile thief followed him home on the bus
- Section of Greater Manchester tram line to close for THREE MONTHS over the summer
- Boris Johnson resignation LIVE: Race to become new Prime Minister starts to take shape
- Manchester set to be hotter than TENERIFE as longest heatwave in four years due to hit
- Disabled pensioner blasts airport 'discrimination' over blue badge parking charges
