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More than 95% of beds were occupied across adult general and acute hospital wards last week, according to the latest NHS figures.
The latest winter situation report has revealed that 14,000 of these beds were taken by patients who were medically fit to be discharged, demonstrating the urgent need for beds in the community.
A significant proportion of beds were also taken up by patients with the flu, with an average of 3,447 beds occupied each day by flu patients.
With further strike action looming, NHS bosses are warning that the pressure on the health service is set to mount even further.
NHS funding has come too late
Dr Layla McCay director of policy at the NHS Confederation, is urging the government and trade unions to come to a pay resolution in order to prevent the crisis from deepening.
She said: “With ambulance workers and nurses set to coordinate a day of strikes next month, this winter continues to look bleak. The war of attrition between the government and trade unions has gone on for too long and must be resolved.”
She added that the emergency funding from the government has come too late, and should have been disbursed “several months ago”.
Despite the pressures, she added that NHS staff are doing “everything they can to make sure patients get the care they need”.
Calls for government to resolve pay dispute
The Royal College of Nursing have similarly called on the government to resolve the pay dispute. RCN Director for England, Patricia Marquis said: “This data shows exactly why nurses across the country are standing up for their patients and joining picket lines for a second consecutive day today.
“With 14,000 patients stuck in hospitals in England who are medically fit to be discharged but can’t be because of the lack of community and social care – a near record – and hospitals full to bursting, the pressure on health and care shows no sign of waning.
“The 47,000 nursing vacancies in England alone need to be filled and fair pay would boost recruitment and retention. The workforce crisis and nursing being underpaid has made care unsafe.
“The Prime Minister and his ministers need to recognise why nursing staff are standing out in the cold on picket lines. It is time they drop the tired rhetoric, do their jobs and negotiate with nurses.”