A spike in Covid absenteeism and a prolonged heatwave have left NHS hospitals and ambulances struggling to cope.
The hot weather is causing more patients to go to emergency departments and callers are being urged not to use 999 except in serious emergencies.
All 10 ambulance trusts in England are on black alert, the highest level, as health leaders warn that “ill-equipped” hospital buildings are struggling to store medicines properly amid unusually high temperatures.
Martin Flaherty, managing director of the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives, said: “The NHS ambulance sector is under intense pressure, with all ambulances operating at the highest level of four under their local action plans to increase resources , usually reserved only for major incidents or short-term periods of unusual demand.
“Severe delays for ambulance crews who can deliver patients to many hospital emergency departments are having a significant impact on the ambulance sector’s ability to respond to patients as quickly as we would like, as our crews and vehicles are stranded outside these hospitals.”
“On top of this we have a number of staff absences due to an increase in Covid cases as well as added pressure caused by the current hot weather which makes things even more difficult for our staff and of course the patients they care for. “
One trust chief in the South West has warned that pressures are mounting this summer and that the heatwave could be the “tipping point”.
He added: “We’re going to start seeing a lot more numbers, so I think we’re at a tipping point where we may have to cancel some electives.”
Several hospital trusts and entire regions are also on black alert and are warning patients to stay away from A&E as their services struggle with Covid-induced staff shortages and high temperatures.
The heat has affected all emergency services as firefighters battle bushfires in Oldham and other parts of the country
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Doctors also told The Independent that more elderly patients were being affected by the heatwave, with emergency departments seeing more elderly patients attending wards this week.
NHS Blood and Transplant, which warned about blood stock levels last week, said donations typically drop by 10 to 15 per cent in hot weather.
The figures show that Covid levels have reached a new record for the pandemic, with an average of 351,000 people being infected every day, according to the latest incidence figures from the ZOE Covid survey.
Dr Leila McKay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation, told The Independent: “As well as the surge in demand, the extreme heat is also putting extra pressure on the NHS’s often outdated and ill-equipped buildings and estates.
“We know that as temperatures rise, NHS organizations across the country are struggling to keep medicines, food, lab kits and IT equipment at the right temperatures.”
Countries across Europe are experiencing heatwaves and the UK is no exception
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She added: “The rise in Covid cases means sickness and staff absences are rising very quickly and lasting longer, at a time when the NHS is already suffering from chronic staff shortages and has 105,000 vacancies.
“In some parts of the NHS, normal levels of staff morbidity have doubled. Combined with the additional effects of the heat wave on many people in our communities, health services are once again experiencing extremely high demand.
Miriam Deakin, interim deputy chief executive of NHS Providers, said: “All signs point to a very challenging summer, autumn and winter for the NHS under pressure as the pressure on beds and overworked staff increases.
“If the heatwave hits people’s health hard, it will pile more pressure on services – particularly ambulance services, which are always in high demand in hot weather – already dealing with recent weekly rises in hospital admissions with Covid-19.”
An extreme heat warning is in place for much of England on Sunday and Monday
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The Independent understands that at one trust in the east of England, NHS bosses have been warned about the impact of the current heatwave on the ability to store medicines at the right temperatures.
A trusted source said they were surprised by the “lack of awareness in hospitals of the importance of keeping all medicines and drugs under certain temperatures”, adding that many older buildings are likely to have “limited” air conditioning and use storage facilities that they could easily heat up in a record heat wave.
“Old warehouses built in a time when room temperature was the norm for all common medicines … can be very hot,” the source said.
The Care Quality Commission, the UK’s health and social care regulator, has identified a number of hospitals in recent years struggling to consistently maintain the appropriate temperatures for storing medicines.
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