Pressure on hospitals due to a surge in COVID-19 cases has prompted health trust bosses to state that patient care and safety may be compromised as a result.
The North Cumbria Integrated Care Foundation Trust, which runs Carlisle’s Cumberland Infirmary and Whitehaven’s West Cumbria Hospital, has declared an Operational Pressures Escalation Level 4 alert.
This, according to NHS England means the pressures on the service have escalated to an extent where organisations are unable to deliver comprehensive care.
It added: “There is increased potential for patient care and safety to be compromised.”
Barrnon Media Ltd was told on New Year’s Eve that patients who needed an intensive care bed were being transferred to hospitals in Newcastle to ease the pressure.
The North Cumbria Integrated Care Foundation Trust did not respond to a request for a comment.
The Operational Pressure Escalation Levels are part of a prepared framework, introduced in 2016, by NHS trusts to manage their operations.
