{"id":1466,"date":"2025-12-12T11:51:46","date_gmt":"2025-12-12T11:51:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/flu-wave-nhs-facing-state-of-preventable-emergency-as-pandemic-lessons-go-unlearned-2\/"},"modified":"2025-12-12T11:51:46","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T11:51:46","slug":"flu-wave-nhs-facing-state-of-preventable-emergency-as-pandemic-lessons-go-unlearned-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/flu-wave-nhs-facing-state-of-preventable-emergency-as-pandemic-lessons-go-unlearned-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Flu wave: NHS facing &#8216;state of preventable emergency&#8217; as pandemic lessons go unlearned\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">DAUK has warned the NHS is facing a \u2018state of preventable emergency\u2019 as the rapidly escalating flu outbreak pushes it to breaking point.\r\n\r\nFrontline doctors say the crisis unfolding across hospitals this winter is not an unavoidable \u2018act of nature\u2019,  but the direct result of political inaction.\r\n\r\nThis is despite clear recommendations set out in the Covid-19 Inquiry. The Hallett Report specifically criticised the lack of \u2018suppression\u2019 measures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Urgent, practical steps<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now DAUK is calling for urgent, practical steps to protect staff and patients.\r\n\r\nThese include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n \t<li>FFP2 and FFP3 masks for frontline healthcare workers<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Free flu and Covid vaccinations for healthcare workers who want them<\/li>\r\n \t<li>Implementation of clean air standards (HEPA\/Ventilation)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">DAUK warned that without immediate steps, the toll on patients and staff will continue to mount.\r\n\r\nDr Matt Kneale, DAUK co-chair, said: \u201cThe sickness levels in frontline doctors and healthcare workers mean we\u2019re facing a state of emergency in our hospitals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Black swan event<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMinisters will tell you this is a \u2018black swan\u2019 event, but it isn\u2019t.\r\n\r\n\u201cIn July last year, the Covid-19 Inquiry handed the Government a blueprint to prevent this exact scenario. They chose not to act on it.\r\n\r\n\u201cIt is heartbreaking to stand on the frontline and watch history repeat itself less than two years after the Hallett Report.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe entered this winter with 98% bed occupancy, with no slack, no buffer and no action plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Flu season<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis is not only a bad flu season, it is the inevitable result of political negligence.\r\n\r\n\u201cThey had the recommendations. They ignored them. Our patients and colleagues in the NHS are paying the price.\u201d\r\n\r\nNHS England figures show the current H3N2 \u201csubclade K\u201d flu wave has driven a 55% rise in flu admissions in a week. An average of 2,660 patients are hospitalised per day.\r\n\r\nEmergency departments are reporting extreme pressure as they are faced with rising infections alongside high rates of illness among healthcare workers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">NHS workforce<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dr Kneale said: \u201cIt\u2019s infuriating to witness a preventable crisis unfold.\r\n\r\n\u201cIt\u2019s a crisis that is placing intolerable strain on the NHS workforce and endangering vulnerable patients.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe need the Government to act now.\u201d\r\n\r\nDAUK committee members are all volunteers. They campaign on the issues facing doctors in their own time. Please support their work by <a href=\"https:\/\/dauk.org\/membership\/\">joining DAUK<\/a> or donating to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gofundme.com\/f\/support-the-work-of-the-doctors-association-uk-dauk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">our GoFundMe<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DAUK has warned the NHS is facing a \u2018state of preventable emergency\u2019 as the rapidly escalating flu outbreak pushes it to breaking point. Frontline doctors&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1585,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,58],"tags":[676,294,175,498],"class_list":["post-1466","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-protect-the-frontline","category-the-nhs","tag-covid-inquiry","tag-emergency-departments","tag-nhs-crisis","tag-pandemic"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1466","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1466"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1466\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1585"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1466"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1466"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dauk.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1466"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}