Operations cancelled amid Staffordshire Covid pressures

University Hospitals of North Midlands said it was facing "unprecedented pressures"

A hospital trust says it has postponed some operations amid "pressures that are more demanding than the most difficult winters".

University Hospitals of North Midlands (UHNM) is dealing with staff shortages and an increase in patients due to Covid-19.

The trust says it has also faced waits in discharging patients to care homes.

It promised a "rigorous clinical prioritisation process", and apologised for treatment delays.

UHNM runs County Hospital in Stafford and Royal Stoke University Hospital.

The Trust said the increase in demand had partly been caused by people coming forward for treatment, having delayed seeking help during the pandemic.

Dr Steve Fawcett, clinical lead for Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent's Urgent and Emergency Care Board, said the situation showed "Covid is still with us" and that cases were higher in the area than the national average.

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Dr Fawcett said some of the patients who had delayed seeking help were "now in worse health than they would have been as a result".

He said: "I really hope everyone will understand that people who are well enough to be discharged really should not be in a hospital bed.

"We need to discharge them to an appropriate care setting if they are not yet well enough to look after themselves, or home with support where needed."

He said he accepted there "may be a limited choice" but added the NHS and local authorities were "working really hard on this".