Published: 11:38, 14 August 2026

Office staff gave up fans and air conditioning units to keep patients cool at The Princess Alexandra Hospital.

As England braces for its fifth heatwave, the NHS trust’s interim chief nursing officer, Jo Ward, confirmed attendances at the accident and emergency department “spiked” as temperatures rose.

She said staff had responded to the extreme weather as “an incident”. She said: “We had a really good response from our estates team in terms of keeping our patients cool, as well as more practical solutions from our staff.

“So drawing the blinds, keeping the windows closed in the daytime and then opening everything at night, ice lollies for our patients and our staff and absolutely a focus on making sure that people were well hydrated.

“Where we had individual calls for mobile [air conditioning] units, we absolutely were deploying them. We took them out of offices where we could. We put them into patient spaces, making sure we complied with our infection control risks. Where we could put fans in, we did... But it has been a challenge.”

She said it was difficult to draw a direct correlation between the weather and casualty numbers but confirmed: “We have seen an increase in attendance to our emergency department.

“As the temperature went up, we certainly saw some significant pressure. Were they clinically related? It’s difficult to say because people came in with other issues, such as frail patients that were falling, but we definitely saw a spike in attendances when the heat went up and then stayed up.”

Tom Burton, chief financial and infrastructure officer and interim deputy chief executive, said the age of many hospital buildings made provision of permanent air conditioning a challenge.

He said: ” A lot of the time we have to be agile and responsive, put in mobile air conditioners where we can.

“However, there are infection prevention and control issues around using air conditioning in environments where you’re recirculating air.

“When the first heatwave hit, we already had an extreme weather plan that we put into action. It worked really well.

“However, like every part of the UK, I think everyone was looking for every fan they could buy, every air conditioning unit they could supply. But we’re really lucky. We’ve got suppliers who really prioritise healthcare, and we were able to bring on board more portable air conditioning units and provide and implement more through the summer.”

He conceded that using the units was not environmentally friendly but said the welfare of patients and staff was paramount.

Mr Burton said: “We’ve been working on this throughout the winter and all of last year as well; for every area where we can provide air conditioning permanently, we have been doing so.”