Surge in demand... A busy weekend led to people queuing to get into the A&E department on Sunday (July 9)
PATIENT pressure continues to pile on the Accident and Emergency department at Nuneaton's hospital as people were spotted queuing out of the door to get treatment.
The line snaked out of the building of the A&E department at the George Eliot Hospital on Sunday (July 9), as droves of people sought medical attention.
A man who attended the A&E with his ill father, who did not want to be named, said: "It was absolute chaos, the queue was out of the door at one point, there were so many people. A lot of them looked like they didn't need to be at A&E, it looked like they were using it as a drop-in centre.
"I felt sorry for the staff, they coped really well under the pressure and it didn't affect my dad's care, they did keep checking on him, but there was a lot of people there."
John Thompson, director of operations at George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust, admitted that there was a surge in A&E demand across the weekend.
He added that people can ease the ongoing pressures on the department by ensuring that they only attend A&E in an emergency.
"This weekend we experienced extremely high demand at our A&E," he said.
"Our staff are working hard to preserve the safety of patients and to ensure that they are treated in a timely and effective manner.
"We ask that patients continue to use A&E, only in emergency circumstances. If you are unsure about where to go to seek medical attention, please call NHS 111, who will be able to advise you and direct you to the appropriate service."
As reported by the News, the hospital's accident and emergency department has been crippled by a high level of demand over recent months, with key four-hour waiting targets being missed.
Back in April it was revealed that the Department of Health has awarded A&E services £1m to help ease pressure for winter 2017/18.
With the number of attacks in Nuneaton lately I'm not surprised!
