31 March 2009
As the Easter bank holiday approaches, staff in the Accident & Emergency (A&E) departments at both Epsom and St Helier hospitals are calling on DIY enthusiasts to take care when making home improvements.
The Easter bank holiday weekend is a popular time for 'DIYers' to spring into action, but in some unlucky cases the hard work ends with a trip to casualty.
The Trust expects to see a rise in the number of people coming to A&E following the bank holiday and have arranged for extra staff to cover the busy period.
On average, the A&E departments at Epsom and St Helier hospitals see and treat 266 people every day. But following bank holidays, this figure usually rises, indicating that more people hurt themselves during public holidays. Last year we treated 308 patients on the day immediately after Easter, and expect to see the same kind of rise in figures again this year.
Carol Anne Johnson, Emergency Medicine Consultant at St Helier Hospital said: "We often see more people at A&E immediately after bank holidays. There are a number of reasons why that could be, but we do see a lot of injuries that have occurred as a result of DIY accidents. We know that people want to make the most of their time off work, but we would encourage all DIY enthusiasts to plan what they're doing, make sure their tools are in good working order and not to be over-ambitious about what they can achieve."
Figures from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) show that over 200,000 people per year are injured while undertaking DIY jobs at the homes. Figures also show that more people are killed or injured using ladders than any other piece of DIY equipment, with more than 30,000 needing hospital treatment each year.
The Trust provides 24-hour accident and emergency facilities at both the Epsom and St Helier hospital sites.
Both emergency departments are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. There is also a dedicated paediatric A&E area on both hospital sites, where children under the age of 16 are seen.
The emergency department treats patients who have suffered a serious injury or accident, or who have developed a sudden serious illness or medical condition. Patients with minor injuries or illnesses may be treated in the minors area of the department by emergency nurse practitioners.
