Peak of winter flu season forecast to be lower this year

PREGNANT WOMEN URGED TO GET FREE FLU VACCINATION TO PROTECT THEMSELVES AND THEIR BABIES

- By LAUREN MONAGHAN

HEALTH officials says that the UK’s winter 2025 flu peak is projected to be lower than previous years.

NHS providers are now starting to roll out their winter plan arrangements for hospitals and services in their areas to prepare for spikes in hospital admissions.

Winter brings increased pressures on hospitals and health services as they deal with heightened flu, RSV and norovirus levels and more patients coming through the front door.

On December 12, 2024, Nottingham University Hospitals Trust dealt with around 30 per cent more patients with the flu in the QMC and City Hospital than it did on the same day the week prior.

Earlier that month, NHS England warned of a potential “quad-demic” over winter 2024, which included a 350 per cent increase in flu cases and an 86 per cent rise in norovirus cases in hospitals nationally from around the start to middle of December 2024 - compared to the same week in 2023.