Kettering General Hospital declares critical incident after patients forced to wait more than 30 hours for bed

Kettering General Hospital bosses have declared a critical incident after the number of A&E patients reached perilous levels.

Managers sent an all-staff memo yesterday morning (Wednesday, January 24) to inform workers that the hospital was now operating at its highest level of alert and that some patients were having to wait more than 30 hours in A&E for an inpatient bed.

They were also told that ambulances were being held outside the department for more than four hours, leaving Paramedics tied up in a queue rather than responding to 999 calls.

Chief operating officer Fay Gordon sent the message which told staff that she had decided to declare an ‘internal critical incident’ because of ‘ongoing pressure on the hospital’, in particular in the emergency department.

Her email continued: “The decision has not been taken lightly, but patient safety and the welfare of staff is our number one priority.

“This morning we had 51 patients waiting for an inpatient bed, some waiting over 30 hours. We are also holding ambulances, some over 4 hours.

“This is not what we wish for our patients at KGH or those who are unwell waiting for ambulance at home, so we must focus on getting people home so we can deal with the patients who most need us.”

Staff were told to try to speed up discharge of patients where it was safe to do so and all non-essential meetings were cancelled.

Like other hospitals, KGH uses the four-stage OPEL (Operational Pressures Escalation Levels) framework to let staff know how busy its services are. The highest level, OPEL 4, was reached yesterday. Also known as ‘black alert’, it means that escalating pressures in the local health and social care system are at a level where the organisation is unable to deliver comprehensive care and that there is increased potential for patient care and safety to be compromised.

Hospitals who reach OPEL 4 must take action to recover capacity and ensure patient safety.

In nearby Leicester, the trust declared a critical incident across its whole network yesterday. Other trusts across the country have also taken similar steps since Christmas, including those in Devon, Cornwall, the West Midlands and Portsmouth.

Although the NHS warned at the beginning of this year of unprecedented demand for its services, blaming winter pressures and striking staff, the news at KGH came more than two weeks after junior doctors returned to work following their industrial action.

Since the pandemic, the hospital has operated at its black alert status on several occasions, as previously reported in this newspaper.

KGH did not respond to a request for comment. A message posted on their website from Dr Imogen Staveley, Interim Chief Medical Officer at NHS Northamptonshire ICB this afternoon (Thursday) said: “This is an exceptional situation and we are doing everything in partnership across the NHS and Social Care to resolve it. I would ask patients to assist the NHS by choosing which service to access when they are unwell, only call 999 in a true emergency and to access alternative services where possible. We assure the public that all emergency services remain open and available whilst we discharge patients from hospital to the most appropriate setting for their ongoing care.”

What can you do to help?There are several things our community can do to help:

Use NHS services wisely – 999 and A&E should only be used for life-threatening emergencies

If you need urgent health care but your condition is not life-threatening please seek support from alternative services such as NHS 111, Corby Urgent Care Centre or your local pharmacy

Please collect relatives who are ready for discharge promptly from local hospitals

Seek medical assistance early from your local pharmacy, the urgent care centre or 111.nhs.uk to avoid conditions becoming worse and needing urgent medical help