People have been urged not to visit Royal Cornwall Hospital's emergency department unless the situation is serious or life-threatening.

The NHS says there has been a huge demand for care over Christmas - resulting in one of the busiest years ever.

NHS Kernow revealed they have seen the arrival of 56 babies, 2,000 emergency department and minor injury unit attendances, over 3,600 calls to the 111 and out of hours GP service, and over 420 calls to the mental health line since Christmas Eve.

Kieran Bignell, System Director of Emergency Care at NHS Kernow, said:

"It's been a busy time for our staff in acute and community hospitals, mental health, 111 integrated urgent care, and emergency ambulance services, and a massive thank you goes out to everyone who has been providing care through the Christmas break."

Over the last four days, there is said to have been an "unprecedented number" of calls to the integrated care service which provides 111 and out of hours GP services. On Boxing Day alone, the team dealt with more than 883 callers, provided 92 clinic appointments, and made 69 home visits.

Whilst only 216 people turned up at the emergency department and minor injury units on Christmas Day, that number rose by 141% to 512 on bank holiday Monday, 27th December. More than half of the 2,000 attendances have been in the last two days (27th and 28th December).

Kieran added:

"Unless your need is serious or life-threatening please help us by not coming to our emergency department or calling out of hours services with a long-standing condition, or something that could otherwise wait. Our clinical teams need to be able to concentrate on those people who are in genuinely urgent need. 111 online can guide you to the right place, and if you're calling 111 by phone, do give us more time to answer during busy periods."

Over the coming weeks, Cornwall could also see the impact of the Omicron covid variant on the demand for hospital and other services, and everyone is urged to make sure they are fully vaccinated, including booster doses. It can take around 7 to 10 days for the vaccine to start working, and the side effects are mild compared to the symptoms of COVID-19.

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