"Near record" demand for NHS 111 services, thought to be partly driven by parents' concern about Strep A, has contributed to the pressures heaped on the NHS.

An average of 1,939 people with flu were in hospital each day last week, up 67% on the 1,162 the previous week.

By comparison, the daily average at the end of November was 482.

In the week before ambulance workers went on strike, ambulance handover delays hit a new high, as one in four patients were waiting more than an hour to be handed to A&E teams. NHS trusts have a target of 100% of patients being handed over within 60 minutes, and 95% in the first 30 minutes.

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Four in 10 patients had to wait at least 30 minutes to be transferred to A&E. The numbers are higher than at any point in recent winters.

There has also been a surge in people with flu requiring intensive care, with the number of flu patients in critical care beds up 72% in a week.

Strep A drives NHS 111 spike

Calls to NHS 111 last week were up almost 60% from the equivalent week in 2021, and increased to 721,301 last week from 706,129 the week before.

The rise in demand is understood to be partly due to parents worried about symptoms of Strep A.

Cases of scarlet fever, an infection linked to Strep A, are more than twice as high as previously thought, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) revealed on Tuesday.

The latest data showed there were 27,177 cases in England between 12 September and 18 December, with 9,482 in the past week.

Officials had previously reported 7,750 cases between 12 September and 11 December but on Tuesday announced an additional 9,945 cases that had not previously been included. This revised the total figure upwards by 128% to 17,695.

Staff in the health service are also experiencing high levels of sickness, with absences due to illness up almost 20% on last month.

'Use NHS services wisely'

NHS England national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis said the health service had "prepared for winter extensively", adding beds, call handlers and expanding falls response services, control centres and respiratory hubs.

He urged people to get any COVID and flu vaccinations they are eligible for.

He added: "As well as the impact of industrial action last week, it is clear that the NHS is facing enormous pressure ahead of Christmas with the number of flu cases in hospital and in intensive care rising week-on-week, on top of significant increases in staff sickness rates and near-record demand for services like 111.

"Despite this, NHS staff continue to deliver a significant amount for patients - dealing with near record 111 calls as well as continuing to make progress on COVID-19 backlogs.

"With more industrial action scheduled for next week, there will be disruption but we urge the public to continue to use services wisely by continuing to call 999 for life-threatening emergencies, use 111 online for other health conditions, and take sensible steps to keep yourself and others safe."