Routine surgery at Salisbury District Hospital will be postponed with immediate effect to allow staff to deal with the COVID-19 outbreak, it has announced.

The hospital is cancelling some elective procedures following a national announcement by NHS England to free up 12,000 to 15,000 hospital beds around the country.

Andy Hyett, Chief Operating Officer at Salisbury Hospital said: ‘As the Chief Medical Officer has stated, NHS services are likely to come under intense pressure as the coronavirus spreads, and when the number of infections peak we need to ensure that we have as many beds available as possible to care for patients with severe respiratory problems.

‘Therefore, in line with well-established plans for situations like this, every hospital in England has now been asked to suspend all non-urgent elective operations for at least three months.  Many of our procedures are now likely to be rescheduled with immediate effect to allow for critical staff training and adaption of certain areas.’

Her added: ‘We are also reviewing our outpatients service with appropriate appointments remaining on site, others being conducted by phone and some being re-scheduled.  We will be contacting everyone affected directly as soon as possible.

‘Urgent, emergency cases and cancer treatments will be carrying on as normal.  We know many people waiting for treatment will be disappointed or worried and we ask for their understanding and patience at this critical time.’