York Hospital has admitted for the first time that it issued a "red alert", after experiencing a record 111 emergency admissions in one day.

The alert went out to partner organisations in health and community care during a hectic period after Christmas.

Twenty patients were admitted after suffering falls, being involved in accidents and for routine complaints, while the rest were suffering from acute chest problems and infections, pneumonia and associated heart problems.

Ambulance chiefs say the "excessive demand" inevitably led to some delays as patients were handed over to the Accident and Emergency department, but say crews worked closely with hospital staff to improve patient flow and no patients were left waiting in ambulances.

The trust originally denied that a red alert had been declared, telling the Evening Press last week that while the hospital had been "very busy," the figures were comparable with the same time last year.

The true situation only came to light after a GP subsequently contacted the paper to say he believed the Evening Press had been "misled."

He revealed that an email had been circulated amongst GPs by the primary care trust, informing them that a red alert had been posted.

It revealed that insufficient beds might be available for further admissions, with potential delays for ambulances bringing patients to the hospital.

The GP said the email implied that patients could be left waiting in ambulances until beds became available, and also that doctors might normally send patients to hospital without full justification.

A spokeswoman for York Hospitals NHS Trust said today it had not been its intention to mislead the public in any way, and it welcomed the opportunity to clarify any confusion or misunderstanding.

"We understand that the misunderstanding arose from the use of different types of terminology, and apologise for any confusion caused," she said.

She said there had been a record 111 emergency admissions on Wednesday, December 29, compared to an average of 65 to 75, depending on the time of year and day of the week.

"As a result, we communicated a 'red alert' to all our partner organisations in health and community care, briefing them on the very high demand for our hospital and accident and emergency services.

"As expected for the time of year, the high level of activity meant a high number of ambulances bringing patients to the hospital.

"Accident and Emergency staff worked throughout the period with ambulance crews to ensure patients were taken into the department, and ambulances turned around with the minimum of delay."

She said that the red alert status was lifted after two days, although the hospital was currently still very busy, with staff working extremely hard to maintain services.

"They have all done a splendid job at a time most people take for granted as a holiday period."

Updated: 10:19 Saturday, January 08, 2005