Number of A&E visits to Queen Alexandra Hospital increases after drop due to Covid-19

Visits to the A&E at Queen Alexandra Hospital increased in May compared to April but numbers still remain well below pre-pandemic levels.

NHS England data shows 9,137 A&E attendances were recorded at Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust in May.

This was an increase of 39 per cent on April, but still 32 per cent below the same month last year.

NHS England data shows 6,580 A&E attendances were recorded at the hospital in Cosham in April marking a 49 per cent decrease from April the same month in 2019, when there were 12,872.

Figures for March this year saw a drop of 23 per cent with only 10,122 patients seen compared with 13,098 attendances last year.

NHS trusts across England dealt with 1.3 million A&E attendances in May, up from 917,000 in April – making them the two quietest months since such records began in 2010.

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine said the reduction had helped ease overcrowding, but said patients should not be afraid to get care.

Dr Katherine Henderson, president of the organisation, said: ‘Emergency Departments are safe and if you are injured or seriously ill you should go right away.

‘If patients have an issue but only have mild non-urgent symptoms it is important to seek help from the right source. Pharmacists, NHS 111 and GPs are all there to provide care.

‘By choosing the right service patients can get the help they need while keeping the NHS safe and reducing the risk of further spread of coronavirus.’

It comes after news that no deaths linked to coronavirus have been reported at Queen Alexandra Hospital for two weeks.

Figures released at the weekend showed that one person died on Friday, June 5, but no deaths had occurred in the 14 days since then. The number of deaths remains at 229.

Figures are subject to change as post-mortem results are filed, as the hospital trust can only fully confirm deaths several days after they have happened.

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