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Flu jab call as 'exceptionally high demand' hits hospitals
Western Daily Press
|November 01, 2025
A CRITICAL incident has been declared by some of the West's biggest hospitals amid an 'unusually early' start to the winter flu season.
The University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) declared the critical incident affecting all hospitals within the trust on Thursday.
These hospitals include the Bristol Royal Infirmary, Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, St Michaels Hospital and Weston General Hospital.
The incident was declared after hospitals were receiving high demand.
It comes as the NHS nationally said that this year's flu season has started 'unusually early'.
It added infections are already rising among most age groups ahead of what is likely to be a "very challenging winter".
Hospital admissions for flu in England stood at 2.2 per 100,000 people last week, up from 1.7 the previous week.
While this is still well below the peaks reached in recent seasons, it is double the rate at this point last year (1.1) and higher than the rates at this stage in 2023 (0.2) and 2022 (1.2).
This story is from the November 01, 2025 edition of Western Daily Press.
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