All about Norovirus, Covid and whooping cough as UK struck by wave of viruses
The UK has been hit by a wave of illnesses, amid warnings of an increase of numbers suffering norovirus, Covid and whooping cough.
Last week, 406 adult hospital beds were filled by patients with diarrhoea and vomiting or norovirus-like symptoms, according to data from NHS England. Another 243 flu patients were in wards in England, including nine in critical care, up more than half (52%) from 160 the previous week.
People have also been urged to book their flu and Covid-19 vaccinations as soon as possible and earlier this week it was reported there have been hundreds of confirmed cases reported so far this year of whooping cough, amid warnings to organise vaccinations for at risk kids.
Further increases are feared in the coming weeks as a result of cold weather, social mixing at Christmas parties and looming strike action by junior doctors. Professor Julian Redhead, NHS England's national clinical director for urgent and emergency care, said the latest flu and novovirus figures will come as "no surprise" to NHS staff.
He added: "Demand on hospitals and staff remains high, and as we experience more spells of cold weather and people gathering indoors for festive events and end-of-year celebrations, we expect to see a continued increase in winter viruses spreading in the community - and in some cases, this will lead to hospital admissions.”
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Some 38% of GP patients in England under the age of 65 and in a clinical risk group are estimated to have received their flu vaccine for this season, along with 28% of all pregnant women, while uptake stands at 76% among all those aged 65 and over. After the NHS national booking system has closed, people eligible for a vaccine can still speak to their GP or a local pharmacist about getting their jabs.
Dr Mary Ramsay, director of public health programmes at the UK Health Security Agency, said: "Millions of eligible people are missing out on vital vaccinations that will provide protection against severe disease this winter. Pregnant women, their unborn babies and those in clinical risk groups are at higher risk of complication from flu. Vaccinating pregnant women also helps to provide protection to newborn babies who will be born during the flu season.
"If you are the parent of a child aged two or three, don't forget that they are also eligible for the flu vaccine and this can be booked via your GP - the nasal spray will help prevent hospitalisations, reduce the spread of flu in the community and avoid you having to juggle a sick child with work and other commitments."
It comes ahead of a strike by junior doctors in England belonging to the British Medical Association (BMA) from 7am on December 20 to 7am on December 23 as part of a long-running dispute over pay, with further action planned for early January.
Rory Deighton, Acute Network director at the NHS Confederation, the membership organisation for the healthcare system, said: "While NHS leaders and their teams have put in a herculean effort to prepare for winter we know that viruses and staff absences will only continue to increase.
"These winter pressures can only be exacerbated by the upcoming junior doctors strikes which are scheduled for some of the most difficult weeks of the year for NHS services. The risk is that this fresh wave of industrial action will pile even more pressure on to already stretched services."
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