HOSPITAL bosses are drawing up detailed plans to avert a winter bed crisis as patient and workload pressure begins to mount.

Preston Acute Hospitals NHS and Chorley and South Ribble NHS Trusts have both been stretched since last autumn to accommodate emergency and elective admissions within existing beds.

It comes after figures released by the Department of Health show that Preston Acute Hospitals is seventh on a list of 20 NHS Trusts with the most patients on 'suspended' lists.

In addition, the level of emergency medical admissions at both hospitals in July this year was higher than the level of emergency admissions in November 1999.

Health chiefs were told this week that the hospitals have been treating more patients and urgent or emergency admissions have resulted in a significant increase in cancelled operations.

Medical bed occupancy rates are above government recommendations and patients are regularly 'slept out' in other speciality beds, causing anxiety and affecting service. Medical and nursing staff are said to be under "considerable workload pressure".

The situation was discussed by Chorley and South Ribble NHS Trust board on Tuesday (August 29).

Measures in preparation for winter were outlined to members who were asked to support proposals to reduce bed pressures and improve patient services.

Plans include:

Establishing additional medical beds at Chorley and South Ribble Hospital and Royal Preston Hospital

Expanding bed management cover using expertise to reduce pressure on nursing and medical staff, giving more time for patient care. Creating a discharge lounge at Chorley, allowing patients to leave earlier in the day.

The trusts' have proposed further winter plans which include:

Setting up a group to handle an operational plan for winter.

NHS staff flu immunisation.

A system ensuring patients discharge is not delayed due to absence of services.

Exploring multi-agency arrangements for planning, co-ordinating and reviewing services before and throughout winter.

A spokesman for the Chorley and South Ribble NHS Trust said: "Winter bed planning is something that is done every year.

"We have an ongoing committee that deals with it, so that we can plan ahead and also see if we can improve on the previous year. It is not something we are panicking about."

Mary Benjamin, business planning manager for the trust, said: "The pressure has not really ceased from last year. From the point of view of emergency admissions, normally in winter things get busier from October onwards and peak in January.

"But activity in July in both hospital trusts has been as high as it was in November."

She said the trust was looking at whether working with other agencies, such as GPs, to help alleviate pressure on staff and beds.