The situation at St Mary’s has improved but remains serious as pressure continues across all NHS services.
Juliet Pearce, Director of Nursing, Midwifery and AHPs, said: “We would like to thank our partners, the public and our staff for their support. Thanks to everyone’s hard work we are in a position to move away from Critical Incident status but all of our services remain under pressure and elective surgery is still paused.
“We had to make some difficult decisions to ensure that our patients could remain safe, and our staff were supported which included looking at transferring a small number of patients the mainland. None of these actions are taken lightly and none are without consequence, however, we have to ensure safety is maintained across all areas of the hospital.
“Our Emergency Department is operating at 120% capacity and despite the very best efforts of our staff, people are having to wait to be admitted into a bed.”
Dr Michele Legg, Island GP and Clinical Director at Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board, added: “Local health and care services are under sustained pressure at the moment and we expect this to continue as we enter the winter months.
“We continue to work in partnership and are doing everything we can to help tackle these issues.
“You can help our front-line staff across health and care by using the right service and ensuring your loved ones can leave hospital as soon as they are ready.
“If you need help or advice and it’s not a life-threatening emergency please visit NHS 111 online and you will be directed to the right service for your needs”
If you have loved ones in hospital that are ready to leave you could help by:
- Checking that the necessary support services, such as carers, are in place
- Collecting loved ones or asking for support from friends and neighbours
- Making sure that they have all necessary medication and dressings
- Checking they have clothes and shoes or whether you need to bring them in
More information about local services is available here: Your services :: Hampshire and Isle of Wight ICS (hantsiowhealthandcare.org.uk)
