Swine flu could cancel Bristol hospital operations
Hospitals in the city have been putting together plans for dealing with a second wave of the H1N1 virus, to ensure that they are prepared to receive additional patients and manage staff sickness.
Routine hospital services and surgery could be delayed or cancelled if the flu outbreak takes hold over the next few months, and women could be sent to just one hospital in the city to give birth if staff sickness means it is safer to have a single maternity unit operating.
Health bosses in the city have had to prepare for increased pressure on their critical care units in the event of a surge in swine flu cases to deal with patients with underlying health conditions.
As previously reported in the Bristol Evening Post, hospitals have also been contacting retired nursing staff and identifying employees who could return to wards if staffing levels dropped due to sickness.
It is expected that a second wave of the virus will have an impact on health services for between eight and 10 weeks, with a peak of about two weeks when there will be the highest demand on hospital intensive care units.
Hospital managers have been drawing up plans to show how they could double the capacity within the units in the event of swine flu patients being admitted, and are also preparing for the possibility of quadrupling the capacity for critical care as per national requirements.
They have looked at how they will increase the number of ventilators, anaesthetic machines and other equipment if the intensive care units become inundated with patients suffering difficulties as part of the pandemic flu, and could make the changes within a day or two if necessary.
University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the Bristol Royal infirmary, has received £700,000 from NHS Bristol to purchase additional intensive care equipment so they can increase the capacity for children.
At North Bristol NHS Trust (NBT), which runs Frenchay and Southmead hospitals, critical care is usually only provided for youngsters admitted for burns or head injuries, but measures are in place to expand the unit to meet the needs of children with swine flu if services at Bristol Children's Hospital become overwhelmed.
NBT has also drawn up a document to highlight the types of medical conditions that will be prioritised in the event of a surge in swine flu cases, and which patients might be cared for elsewhere or by different staff.
They also held an exercise called Cold Play II on Friday to test their plans against possible scenarios. Similar exercises have also been carried out with trusts across the city and the South West working together over the last fortnight.
Health trusts have been planning for a flu pandemic for several years, and have increased their work following the outbreak of swine flu in Mexico in April.
During the first wave of the virus, into the summer, 34 patients were admitted to NBT with suspected swine flu. One patient was confirmed as having the virus, while 11 were presumed to have it but most of them were not swabbed. One was inconclusive and 21 tested negative for H1N1.
Plans are also being drawn up to ensure that all necessary health staff receive their swine flu vaccines when stocks are delivered.
Managers have been looking to the experience in Australia to help them plan the best way of dealing with swine flu if it peaks and high numbers of patients need to be admitted to hospitals.
At Weston Area Health NHS Trust, managers will work with the other hospital trusts in the area to find additional beds for intensive care and maternity patients as they do currently, in the event of additional pressure from swine flu.
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