Doctors are being forced to discharge the equivalent of four wards full of patients to make room for a daily influx of 60 to 80 emergency admissions at an Oxford hospital.

And during the past month the crisis at the John Radcliffe has soared, with 80 to 100 people passing through the accident and emergency department every 24 hours.

The news confirms that the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust is under pressure from increasing nursing shortages and bed closures.

Nursing and patient services director Tricia Hart told a trust board meeting yesterday the severe problems which have hit the Headington-based hospital recently could affect services for more than a week. The JR has suffered a spate of "level three" alerts during December, when GPs are advised not to make any more referrals to casualty and paramedics are warned to take emergency patients to other hospitals outside the county.

The huge numbers mean beds at the trust's four hospitals must be emptied every day for new arrivals.

Mrs Hart said: "It's been a difficult and trying time, but it has been a testament to all the staff who have tried to expedite the situation."

Chief executive John MacDonald said the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre had agreed to take minor trauma injuries and Oxfordshire Mental Health Care Trust had taken responsibility for psychiatric patients admitted to casualty. Oxfordshire Ambulance Trust was operating more twilight shifts, to cope with a growing number of patients being admitted by GPs doing home visits in the evenings.

And a district nurse would be on duty at the John Radcliffe to deal with non-life threatening casualty patients.

Mr MacDonald said: "Our recovery is dependant on help from other agencies and we are very grateful to them for that."

Story date: Saturday 18 December

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