Lisa Nobes, director of nursing for the NHS Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care Board, is calling for support from families and friends to ease pressure on hospital beds by assisting with patient discharges.
Ms Nobes said: “Our local health care staff are doing an amazing job during this challenging time, as they always do.
“However, we need to ensure that people who are waiting in our emergency areas can be admitted by discharging medically fit patients who only remain in hospital because the appropriate home support they require at home is not yet in place.”
The plea comes amid high levels of demand, with increased admissions and winter viruses continuing to put strain on services.
Many patients are well enough to leave hospital but remain on wards due to a lack of suitable support at home.
Families, carers, and friends are encouraged to contact the nurses in charge of their loved one’s care if they can provide temporary support.
Ms Nobes said: “I would ask anyone who is able to support a loved one who is well enough to go home to come forward and assist us.
“Not only will they be helping their loved one or friend on the road to recovery, but they will also be helping somebody else to get the right care.”
She warned that extended hospital stays pose risks to patients who are fit for discharge.
She said: “The longer well patients remain in hospital when they are fit for discharge, the longer they are at risk of picking up further viruses, not sleeping properly and not mobilising enough.
“There really is no place like home – nobody wants to be in hospital any longer than they need to be.”