HOSPITAL occupancy levels continue to rise at north Cumbria’s hospitals.

The Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle and Whitehaven’s West Cumberland Hospital were operating at almost capacity last week, an increase even on the previous week’s high levels.

Occupancy rates varied from 92.9 per cent to 96.1 per cent. The ‘safe’ limit recommended by experts is 85 per cent.

A nursing union has reiterated its concerns over the levels across the north east and Cumbria, saying it is unsafe.

Glenn Turp, regional director for the Royal College of Nursing northern region, said: “Hospitals across the region continue to operate at almost full capacity.

“This is putting nursing and clinical staff under enormous pressure, making it difficult for them to ensure that care is delivered safely. It also means that routine care, like drugs rounds can take much longer than normal or are not as timely as they should be.

“Starved of enough nurses, the NHS continues to struggle. With no solution to the chronic nursing shortage, it is almost impossible for hospitals to deliver safe quality care let alone open more beds when needed – especially if the winter continues to bite or if there is a serious outbreak of flu.”

He continued: “We urgently need the Government to back a fully funded workforce strategy with staffing levels enshrined in law. Only that way can the NHS ensure that there is the appropriate number of nursing staff with the right skills. Until then, the health service will continue to stumble from one crisis to another.”

A spokeswoman for North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs the two hospitals, said it is always conscious of the impact of cold weather, and has appropriate and robust plans in place.

Alison Smith, executive chief nurse at North Cumbria University Hospitals NHS Trust, added: “At this time of year we always expect to see more people attending our hospitals in line with the cold weather and we have robust plans in place to ensure we are prepared for these busier periods.

“With the introduction of Integrated Care Community hubs in north Cumbria this year, our teams in the hospital trust and in the community are working closer than ever before to ensure patients are only in a hospital bed when it is the best place for them to be.

“This is also reducing the length of time patients need to stay in hospital and the number of patients who are ready to leave hospital and are waiting for a care package is at an all-time low.

“The latest data for our performance against the 95 per cent four hour emergency care standard shows that we are 18th out of 105 trusts nationally which demonstrates that our efforts are having a positive impact.

“However, we are never complacent and know we still have further improvements to make which we are committed to delivering including building a strong nursing workforce for the future.”

The Trust also says that its staff vaccination uptake has already exceeded its target of more than 75 per cent of frontline staff.