RECORD numbers of patients visited the county’s A&E departments in July placing continued pressure on emergency departments, new figures show.

As the country baked in the middle of a two-month long heatwave, the summer failed to provide a respite for the already stretched emergency departments with attendances rising to 14,173, according to NHS England.

The figure for July exceeds the monthly number of patients being seen in A&E during the winter which was at its highest in March when 13,326 patients sought emergency treatment.

During the summer Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH), which runs the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, issued warnings over the dangers of the prolonged hot weather after a rise in the number of people suffering from heatstroke.

However, while heat-related attendances account for some of the increase, bosses at the trust – which also runs Banbury's Horton General Hospital – said the rise over the summer was part of a general year-on-year increase.

The news comes after the British Medical Association warned in April that the NHS could now be facing year-round pressures rather than just the typical winter pressures.

Acting director of clinical services at OUH, Sara Randall, said: “At this time of year with the unusually hot weather there have been some heat-related attendances at our emergency departments, however emergency attendances are increasing generally this year - not just in the summer.

“This is a national pattern across the NHS.”

The trust working alongside other NHS organisations and social care services, has reduced cases of delayed transfer of care, also known as bed blocking, by almost 60 per cent since July 2017.

Hospitals are under pressure to free up space before next winter in an effort to prevent a repeat of last year.

Thousands of non-urgent operations were cancelled across the country as NHS trusts struggled to provide enough beds amid one of the worst winters of recent times.

However, with A&E patients numbers remaining high over the usually quieter summer months it remains to be seen how hospitals cope with demand this winter.

Ms Randall added: “We have already begun working with our health and social care partners to plan for the winter and to ensure we’re as prepared as possible for the associated pressures.

“Our collaborative approach has already proved successful in reducing delays in transfer of care, and we want to take this forward throughout the year.”