Shropshire's A&E attendances fall by more than 50 per cent
Visits to Shropshire's A&E departments fell by more than 50 per cent in April compared to the previous year, new figures have revealed.
The fall follows a trend across England, with A&E attendances and emergency admissions to hospitals falling to their lowest figure on record in the face of coronavirus.
NHS England, which published the figures, said the drop was “likely to be a result of the Covid-19 response” – an indication that people have been staying away from A&E departments because of the coronavirus outbreak.
In Shropshire, just 5,680 people attended the emergency departments at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital (RSH) and Princess Royal Hospital (PRH) in Telford last month – down from 12,244 in April 2019.
Four out of five patients at the county's A&Es were also admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours last month.
The sharp dip in patient attendances has prompted hospital bosses to encourage people to seek emergency help if they need it.
Dr Arne Rose, medical director at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, which runs PRH and RSH, said: “Medical help is still available and if someone needs it, we would ask them to please seek it out to avoid the risk of building up more serious problems further down the line.
“Our emergency departments (EDs) remain open for patients who have suffered a serious injury, severe illness or a medical emergency.
"Everybody who attends our EDs will be seen safely and no-one will be turned away.
“For less serious conditions that still need urgent attention, the new urgent treatment centres at the Whitchurch and Bridgnorth minor injury units, which have been temporarily relocated from PRH and RSH, are also open, for things like bites, cuts and lacerations; foreign bodies in the eyes, nose and ears; fractures that require plaster only; minor burns and scalds; minor head injuries; sprains and bruises; and wound infections.”
Records
Across England 0.9 million A&E attendances were recorded last month, down 57 per cent from 2.1 million in April 2019.
The number is the lowest for any calendar month since current records began in August 2010.
Emergency admissions to A&E departments at hospitals in England also showed a sharp fall last month, down 39 per cent from 535,226 in April 2019 to 326,581 in April 2020.
This is the lowest number reported for any calendar month since current records began.
NHS England again said this was likely to be a consequence of the coronavirus outbreak.
The UK lockdown was announced on March 23.
A&E attendance figures in Shropshire also saw a drop in March when 8,389 patients visited the county's emergency departments, down from 12,164 in March 2019.
