Overview
- Official figures from 2020/21 to 2024/25 record nearly 1.9 million headache attendances, about 1.4 million for cough, 1.2 million for sore throats and 1 million for earaches.
- Attendances for cough rose from about 44,000 in 2020/21 to 435,728 in 2024/25, a near tenfold increase.
- In 2024/25 clinicians logged 2.2 million cases with “no abnormality detected” and more than 500,000 patients left before receiving a first diagnosis.
- NHS England urges use of NHS 111, pharmacies and walk-in services for non-life-threatening issues, and local trusts are warning that only true emergencies should attend A&E.
- The government says 500 new ambulances are being deployed this winter as hospitals report severe pressure from respiratory illness and seasonal demand.