Sharon Graham of Unite stands for NHS strikes in West Midlands

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A parent has described scene at his local children’s hospital “like a war zone” with children “sprawled all over the floor” and patients seen queueing out of the door. The NHS is facing a serious crisis this winter as nurses across the country strike over pay. A worried dad, who was concerned when his two-year-old child broke out in a large rash, was forced to head to A&E at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool on Sunday afternoon after being unable to get seen through the NHS 111 service or at a walk-in centre.

The dad, who wants to remain anonymous, joined many others in queueing outside the A&E department for 40 minutes.

The concerned parent, who was praising of hospital staff throughout, shared an image of the queue to get into the hospital and described the chaotic scenes he witnessed once he got inside.

He told the ECHO: “There were kids sprawled all over the floor in ever direction we looked, my partner said it looked like a war zone. This was after it took us an hour and 40 minutes just to speak to a receptionist.

“The Government put out this propaganda about getting seen through 111 or at the walk-in centre but no parent is going to wait that long when they are really worried, they are going to go to hospital – every child I saw in there needed to be in there, but the hospitals are beyond crisis now.”

The dad said that after a wait of around eight hours his child was seen and has since been diagnosed. The family are hopeful they will be able to take him home soon.

The worrying account is the latest in a long line of those being reported conveying the enormous pressures facing NHS staff now. The dad said his experience left him convinced that the health service is now “unmanageable”.

He added: “This is not the fault of staff on the ground, they are so dedicated and the staff in Alder Hey who we saw were just in a different league. But what is happening in hospitals now is so wrong in a rich country like this. None of this is the fault of the staff, its the system. We are so lucky to have the amazing NHS and Alder Hey Hospital, the scenes are no fault of our great institution or local trust.

“It feels like these hospitals won’t last, people are dying now – I think we need to stand up and fight for the NHS because it is being sucked away in front of our eyes.”

In a statement, a spokesperson for Alder Hey Children’s Hospital said: “Alder Hey is seeing record attendances in our Emergency Department this winter. We would urge parents and carers to only attend in cases of an emergency.

“To help make the right decision, please check Alder Hey’s Symptom Checker on our website, your GP, NHS 111 or walk in centres before attending. We would like to thank you for your patience and co-operation at this really busy time.”

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