“Reopen the walk-in-centres”: Your say on overcrowded Lincoln A&E

Readers call for walk-in centres and emergency departments to reopen after reports of patients sleeping on the floor of Lincolnshire’s hospitals.

Bosses said they were taking action to stop emergency departments being “overwhelmed” during a meeting of United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust’s board on Tuesday.

Members admitted they were oversubscribed for beds and that patients who were medically fit for discharge were blocking issues in emergency departments from being solved.

Readers responded to our story to give their view on the situation..

A number criticised the lack of appointments available at GP surgeries, with Barry Lackk writing: “Four times we have tried to get to see our GP with our four-week-old son and just been given medication without actually seeing him.”

Meanwhile, Lucy Smithbone said: “I was in A&E on Friday and the amount of people who had tried to see a GP and been refused was ridiculous. GPs need to stop hiding behind COVID.”

Healthcare services have for a number of years now struggled to recruit and retain staff in the county.

The issue has led to multiple changes including the downgrading of Grantham A&E and the centralisation of services such as stroke response.

In the latest news, Lincolnshire Partnership Foundation Trust on Tuesday closed a mental health unit.

Nationally, NHS workers have said a pay rise offered by the government is not and threats of strike action are also putting service managers under pressure.

Several commenters blamed the reduction in services for the current issues.

Lisa Mapletoft said: “Closed down Grantham A&E so Lincoln can’t cope with all the extra people”

Kayleigh Waddingham said: “Open back up the A&Es which ULHT closed, the walk-in centres as well. Flaming ridiculous.”

Bryn Jones said: “There are no council run care homes anymore. In the past patients who had been deemed fit for discharge were sent out to care homes until they could look after themselves.

“Nowadays practically every ward at Lincoln is full of elderly patients who could be discharged to a care home or patients who have mental issues or learning disabilities who have nowhere to go for interim aftercare.”

Others suggested that a brand new hospital should be built which could be “easily upgraded”.

Jamie Collins said: “Sell the existing land as this would be worth a lot of money. I know people will say they can’t afford it but they waste money as it is.

“The nurses and doctors don’t like the hospital as a work place, they come here for training because it’s cheap and then leave and go elsewhere and can you blame them.”

During the meeting on Tuesday,  Michelle Harris, Deputy Chief Operating Officer at ULHT, said there were solutions being put in place but that some things did take time.

“No-one would wish relatives or loved ones to be in the situation as described,” she said.

“We are taking a number of actions in terms of rapidly trying to improve our experience for patients given the extreme sensitivity of what you’ve described.

“Some of these things do take a little bit of time to gain traction. We do and are trying to reduce overcrowding in EDs (emergency departments).”

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