CRUCIAL groups are getting together to banish winter anguish.

Council, Health Authority and NHS Trust experts are combining to prevent the possibilities of hospital nightmares.

Health care managers have been discussing what lessons can be learned from last winter and plan to ensure interaction and co-operation is targeted at coping with crisis situations.

It's part of a Government request for local contingency plans to ensure winter problems don't arise.

Cold snaps bring flu epidemics, staff shortages, travelling difficulties and an increase in admissions through respiratory problems.

Main aims are to guarantee bed availability for emergency admissions and the discharge of patients is not delayed.

And that means no long waits for accident and emergency patients, no ambulances tied up at hospitals for long periods and no patients left overnight on trolleys in corridors.

A spokesman for the group said:"We cannot tell when the peak winter demands will occur, but together we can cope.

"Of course problems can be reduced by people taking greater care of themselves during winter. We are doing our best to get useful advice and help to vulnerable people before the crisis occurs."

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