NHS England reported that 5,500 patients were in hospital with flu in the week leading up to New Year's Day, the highest figure that winter, with flu cases in hospital up 47% on the previous week. The figures were published in the weekly winter situation report and set out in an NHS England news article dated 9 January 2023, which also recorded more than 9,000 patients in hospital with COVID in the same week.
The report gives more precise figures for general and acute beds: 5,105 patients with flu, up from 3,479 the previous week. The number of patients with COVID-19 in hospital rose to an average of 9,390, up by almost 1,200 on the week before. NHS England said staff in NHS 111 answered a near record number of calls. Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay said there had been "the highest levels of hospital admissions we've seen in at least a decade", with over 5,000 hospital beds a day taken up by flu patients compared with just 50 at the same time the previous year.
"Flu cases in hospital jumped up by almost a half (47%) last week"
NHS England said almost 20 million people had received a flu jab, including four in five people aged over 65, and more than 17 million had received a COVID booster, but that a number of eligible people had not yet taken up their winter vaccinations. Those eligible for the flu jab, as listed by NHS England, include all people aged 50 and over, people aged between six months and 49 years with a specified health condition, pregnant women, children aged two and three, some secondary school-aged children, primary school-aged children, those in care homes, carers, frontline health and social care staff, and household contacts of people with weakened immune systems. Children can receive the vaccine as a nasal spray.
The article included accounts from patients hospitalised with flu over Christmas and the New Year, including Carole Hildreth, 64, who spent nearly two weeks at Stoke Mandeville Hospital with flu and pneumonia, and Linda Matthews, 67, who spent five days at Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust's flu ward. NHS Director of Vaccinations and Screening Steve Russell said it was "not too late" for anyone invited for a flu vaccine to come forward, and urged people to book an appointment at a local pharmacy, GP or via the National Booking Service.
Why it matters for households
The figures cover the week to New Year's Day, when flu hospital admissions in England reached their highest point that winter and COVID patients in hospital also rose. Households with members in the eligible groups listed by NHS England are affected by the vaccination offer, and the NHS states that those who have been invited but not yet taken up a flu vaccine can still do so. The article sets out the symptoms and risks of flu and COVID for individuals in the site's guide to telling cold, flu and COVID-19 apart, and wider household health planning is covered in the health emergencies section.
What happens next
NHS England said winter plans were already in place to manage rising demand, including around the clock system control centres, additional bed capacity, more mental health support for ambulance services and community falls services. The weekly winter situation reports are published on NHS England's statistics pages. The government said up to £14.1 billion of additional funding over the next two years would improve urgent and emergency care, with an extra £500 million to help get fit people out of hospital quicker.
Cold, Flu or COVID-19
