Critical incident status remains in place at Northampton and Kettering General Hospitals

Both of Northamptonshire’s acute hospitals remain in a critical incident more than a week after it was first declared.

The critical incident was first declared at Northampton General Hospital and Kettering General Hospital on December 27, 2022 in response to “significant ongoing pressure” as the health service battles “one of the toughest winters in its history”.

More than a week on, the trust has confirmed that the status remains in place.

A spokesman for Kettering and Northampton general hospitals said: "Due to the significant ongoing pressure on our services we remain in critical incident at both Kettering and Northampton general hospitals.

“These incidents were declared at both trusts on December 27. This status helps our teams to take actions to ensure patients continue to receive safe and appropriate care.

"Our teams continue to work exceptionally hard. We would like to reassure our patients and the public that, despite the challenges faced, emergency services remain open.

“People should also continue to attend planned appointments unless they are contacted.”

When the incident was first announced, a spokesman said: “Escalating to critical incident enables us to open additional beds and enlist the support of our partners to help us cope with the current pressures.”

The original statement stopped short of detailing which departments are under most “pressure”.

The spokesman also confirmed that visiting restrictions and mask wearing rules introduced last week remain in place.

The hospital is also urging residents to seek advice from NHS 111 and consider all options before attending A&E.

More than a dozen NHS hospital trusts across England are understood to have declared critical incidents since mid-December.

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, added: “High rates of flu, ongoing issues with delayed discharge and the disruptive impact of industrial action are compounding the longer-term issues of over 130,000 NHS vacancies, a decade-long lack of investment in capital and the elective backlog. This is bringing pressures to a head in many parts of the country.”