Hospitals declare critical incident amid high demand

Royal Stoke is one of two UHNM sites facing severe demand for services

High demand has led to a hospital trust declaring a critical incident, meaning it can cancel or delay non-essential work.

The University of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM) said moving to a critical incident footing - the highest alert level used by the NHS - would allow it to "maintain safe services".

The trust said both Royal Stoke University Hospital and County Hospital in Stafford had been "under severe and sustained pressure" and demand had increased over the last three days.

Dr Matthew Lewis, UHNM medical director, said: “For some patients, there may be much longer delays than usual."

He asked the public to help by only using accident and emergency in a serious or life-threatening situation.

"We ask that their friends or loved ones pick them up from hospital as soon as possible and have everything they need at home," he added.

Dr Lewis also thanked his staff for their "on-going efforts during this extremely challenging period".