GP strike could "swamp" Addenbrooke's A&E unit

Addenbrooke's could be "swamped" with patients if GPs go on strike.

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH), which runs Addenbrooke’s and The Rosie hospitals, have said there is a risk more people will go to A&E if GPs walk out.

Members of the British Medical Association (BMA) are in a dispute with NHS England over contract changes, and the BMA has warned that industrial action could take place unless "urgent improvements are made".

Dr Ashley Shaw, CUH Medical Director:

"I think the risk is very real, if there is a significant withdrawal of labour by general practice, with the scale of patients seen in the various forms general practices, that could have a significant impact on flow and attendance in the emergency department.

"This is not something formally raised with me [by the Integrated Care Board], but it could quite rapidly have a significant impact on the number of patients attending the department.

"Even a one-per cent change in the community could swamp us, it could be as small as that."

Figures suggest there has been an improvement in the number of people going to A&E who are seen within four hours, with 71.4 per cent receiving treatment in that time in March 2024.

It is also understood an average of 41 more patients are coming into A&E every day compared to 2023.