Secondary Care Pressures

Please read this important notice from Swansea Bay University Health Board regarding Primary Care Services

We have received an urgent communication from Swansea Bay University Health Board (SBUHB) with regards to Primary Care Services and Secondary Care Sites (these include hospitals)

SBUHB ESCALATION LEVEL: BUSINESS CONTINUITY INCIDENT

The health board is experiencing unprecedented pressures across all sites and as such has had to escalate from level 4 status to invoke their Business Continuity Plan. There is a large back log of ambulances outside the Emergency Department with crews unable to offload patients due to lack of capacity within the department/building. This is having a knock-on effect for all other secondary care sites with minimum patient movement being seen across SBUHB. Community services have been called upon to increase the volume of discharges where appropriate/possible to support greater care at home. The pressure seen across Primary Care services is acknowledged in addition to the current situation seen on Secondary Care sites. As part of this escalation process General Practice are asked to please consider the following:
 

• Deferred referral – Where secondary care input is necessary but not urgent for today please consider asking patients to delay attendance at secondary care stes and re-assess patients later in the day where possible/appropriate.
• Alternative treatment centres – Please consider the appropriateness of the Minor Injury Unit at Neath Port Talbot Hospital or referrals to the Acute GP Unit for those patients able to be seen in these services.
• Referral options – Please utilise the Urgent Primary Care Centre and Community Pharmacy service wherever possible for appropriate patients. 
• Increased triage/home visit access – Can I urge all practices able to facilitate an increased urgent care/triage/home visit service to implement as best as possible today to help minimise the number of 999 calls or presentations to the Emergency Department
• Patient Education – Please can you promote the Choose Well scheme and symptom sorter tools on the 111 NHS Wales website. Please also enure patients are aware of the 111/Out of Hours services when practices are closed during evenings and overnight to try and minimise inappropriate presentations at the Emergency Department where possible.
• Patient Communication – Can I ask for this information to be widely disseminated to all practice staff and patients to ensure all are aware of the critical situation our secondary care services are currently experiencing. 

With my utmost thanks and appreciation for your help in this matter. 

Dr A Mehta 
Med St Ex (Ger), DCH, DRCOG, DFFP, PgC Med Ed, MD, FRCGP