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The NHS has warned that “skyrocketing” cases of flu could make this winter “one of the worst we have ever seen”, as data showed the number of hospital patients with the illness had quadrupled over the past month.
Data published on Friday by NHS England showed there were more than 5,070 people in hospital with flu on December 29, up from 1,190 at the end of November.
This flu season started earlier than in 2023-24, with hospital cases almost 3.5 time higher at the end of December than during the same week in the previous year.
NHS leaders warned that hospitals in England face mounting pressure from a “quad-demic” of flu, norovirus, Covid-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), with the seasonal peak in these illnesses still to come.
“The winter flu season has not only hit the NHS early this year, but it is potentially on track to be one of the worst we have ever seen,” said Professor Sir Stephen Powis, NHS England’s national medical director.
Hospital occupancy rates in England remain similar to last year despite there being 1,301 more open beds. In the week ending December 29, 89 per cent of the total 101,309 beds were occupied.
Tim Gardner, assistant director of policy at the Health Foundation, said many hospitals were in effect full, leading to longer waits in A&E and delayed ambulance handovers.
“While the current pressures on the NHS are being exacerbated by seasonal viruses, these annual winter struggles are more a reflection of a health system that lacks resilience following years of austerity before the pandemic,” he added.
Professor Julian Redhead, NHS England’s national clinical director for urgent and emergency care, said “skyrocketing” flu cases were “nowhere near letting up” at the end of last year.
“On top of flu there is also continual pressure from Covid, while RSV and norovirus hospital cases are also higher than last year,” he said, adding the “extreme cold snap” posed a further risk to the vulnerable and those with respiratory conditions.
NHS England data showed there were an average of 528 patients in hospital with norovirus and 1,184 with Covid-19 last week, as well as 74 children with RSV.
Sarah Arnold, senior policy lead at The King’s Fund, a think-tank, said it was “worrying” that the flu season had started earlier than in previous years.
“The English NHS, already under-bedded and understaffed in comparison to similar healthcare systems in other countries, is consistently running near to full capacity,” she added.
Health secretary Wes Streeting said the government was investing in the NHS and social care reform so it could “finally break out of the cycle of annual winter crises”.
“This government has ended the strikes so staff are on the frontline this winter rather than the picket line, introduced the new RSV vaccine, and put immediate extra investment into the NHS,” he added.
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