A hospital trust in Devon has shifted to the highest alert level after claiming it is being overwhelmed by an influx of Covid-19 patients and staff absences.
Bosses at the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Trust activated OPEL yesterday, also known as a black alert . These are declared when a hospital is under such significant pressure it cannot deliver comprehensive care and patient care is at risk.
Its deputy chief executive Dr Adrian Harris said that whole wards had been forced to close because of coronavirus, which limited the number of beds they had available.
Bosses blamed high levels of Covid-19 and staff absences, which hospital officials claimed is more than double what would normally be expected at this time of year.