NHS crisis: Baby had colon operation delayed because hospital ‘didn’t have enough doctors’
Cradling her seven-month-old daughter Isabella, who is now recovering from surgery, Zsuzsanna Tandy says: “We have very mixed feelings about being in hospital.”
Isabella was born with a rare condition that affects her colon and went for an operation in Birmingham in early January.
But after she had been given the general anaesthetic, they were told the surgery couldn’t go ahead that day.
“They called us back in half an hour because they cannot proceed so we had to come back,” Ms Tandy says.
“I, as a mum, was stressed out, running back, why they cannot proceed and then finding out they didn’t have enough doctors in the house.”
On her phone, Ms Tandy has a video of her daughter waking up from the anaesthetic and a picture of her in her car seat on the way home – only to have to return for the surgery the following week.
Then, earlier this month, Isabella fell ill again and they rushed her to their local A&E in Dudley.
“Going into A&E you are stressing because what’s going wrong with your daughter who’s just had an operation?
“So we went into A&E and it’s just the constant waiting,” Ms Tandy tells Sky News.
Mum Zsuzsanna Tandy pictured with baby Isabella
Eventually she took Isabella back to Birmingham Children’s Hospital where she had another procedure and is now recovering.
She can’t praise the staff there highly enough, describing them as “absolutely brilliant”.
But her experiences of an NHS under pressure in recent weeks have left her concerned about the impact escalating strike action could have.
Someone needs to ‘step in and do something’
“I don’t blame the nurses, doctors, they do their job and they’re brilliant but they’re under stress,” Ms Tandy says.
“There’s already low staff in many wards. From other wards nurses come and help out. They do an amazing job and they work extra hours.
“If more staff go on strike, I don’t know how that’s going to work.
“Honestly, waiting long hours because there is not enough staff – somebody really should step in and do something because there are people and children stressing and suffering in hospitals”.
She believes nurses should be paid more.
“The government should really engage in every kind of talks because there are too many strikes,” she says.
If you are an NHS worker and would like to share your experiences with us anonymously, please email NHSstories@sky.uk
Earlier this week tens of thousands of NHS workers, including nurses in England and GMB union ambulance workers in England and Wales, downed tools as part of the biggest NHS strike in history.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) director for England, Patricia Marquis, called on Rishi Sunak to intervene but told Sky News there had been no “direct contact” from the prime minister.
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NHS workers took strike action in one of the biggest walkouts in the history of the health service
Junior doctors in England are “likely” to go on strike next month in a dispute over pay and conditions, a union spokesperson said.
Nurses from A&E, intensive care and cancer wards could also join colleagues on the picket line as the RCN becomes increasingly frustrated by the government’s unwillingness to negotiate.
They are set to join tens of thousands of workers including physiotherapists, teachers, university staff and civil servants as a winter of industrial action continues.
Read more:
Strikes: Who is taking industrial action in 2023 and when?
Woman feels ‘imprisoned’ after carer shortage forces her into care home
A Department of Health spokesperson said Health Secretary Steve Barclay has been clear he wants to continue discussing with unions what is fair and affordable as part of the 2023/24 pay process.
This includes “concerns around pay, conditions and workload to find ways to make the NHS a better place to work for everyone”.
“He continues to urge unions to call off strikes and engage in a constructive dialogue about the Pay Review Body Process for the coming year,” the spokesperson said.
“Our priority is keeping patients safe.
“The NHS has tried and tested plans in place to minimise disruption and ensure emergency services continue to operate.”
All flights were halted at Edinburgh Airport this morning due to an IT issue affecting its air traffic control provider.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, the airport later announced service had resumed.
Its post read: “Flights have now resumed following the IT issue with our air traffic provider.
“We thank passengers for their patience and understanding.”
But passengers continue to feel the effects.
A Delta Air Lines flight from New York to Edinburgh was diverted to Dublin after going into a holding pattern over the Scottish capital.
And a live arrivals board on the airport’s website showed multiple flights diverted, delayed and cancelled.
Arrivals board at Edinburgh Airport. Pic: Edinburgh Airport
Morven McCall and Cody Stevenson, both 19, were due to fly easyJet from Edinburgh to Amsterdam on their first trip away together.
Morven told Sky News: “We literally just got into the airport and as soon as we walked through the door there was an announcement that it had been cancelled.
“I was ill over the summer and had to cancel two holidays already, this was our first time going away together. We are just gutted and stressed.”
Follow live: Latest updates as flights halted
Arrivals at Edinburgh Airport. File pic: PA
One passenger was on a plane when they found out.
They said: “We boarded our flight and pushed back on time for an 8.45 (am) departure, then sat for a while before the pilot told us what was happening.
“He updated us a couple of times, cabin crew are brilliant at handing out water etc, and I’m surprised that everyone appears to be upbeat. But then you do wonder how long for, just been told we’re hoping to be in the air in 20 minutes.”
Another passenger told us: “The first news was from the airport announcement as we were halfway through boarding, saying the airfield was closed due to air traffic control down.
“No one knew what was going on. We’d already been delayed a bit before boarding, with no reason. I suspect problems started about 9am.”
It comes after an earlier announcement that all flights had been halted.
“No flights are currently operating from Edinburgh Airport,” the previous statement said.
“Teams are working on the issue and will resolve as soon as possible.”
There was no timeframe for recovery initially, Sky News learned.
It’s understood by PA that the issue was not linked to today’s Cloudflare outage.
Edinburgh Trams also posted on X, writing: “If you’re travelling with us to @EDI_Airport this morning, please be aware that flights are not currently operating.”
The airport urged passengers to contact their airline for the latest information on flights.
An average of 43,000 passengers per day use the airport, which is served by 37 airlines flying to 155 destinations.
A former doctor has been charged over alleged sexual assaults on 38 patients in his care.
Nathaniel Spencer, 38, has been charged with 15 counts of sexual assault, 17 counts of assault by penetration, nine counts of sexual assault of a child under 13, three counts of assault a child under 13 by penetration and one count of attempted assault by penetration.
It follows a police investigation into alleged sexual offences between 2017 and 2021.
Staffordshire Police said in a statement the charges come after a complex investigation by the Public Protection Unit into sexual offences at the Royal Stoke University Hospital, in Stoke-on-Trent, and Russells Hall Hospital, in Dudley.
North Staffordshire Justice Centre
Ben Samples, deputy chief crown prosecutor for the West Midlands CPS Complex Casework Unit and Serious Violence, Organised Crime and Exploitation Unit, said: “We have decided to prosecute Nathaniel Spencer for a number of serious sexual offences allegedly carried out against patients while he was working as a doctor – including assault by penetration and sexual assault against a child.
“Our prosecutors have worked at length to support a detailed and complex investigation by Staffordshire Police, carefully reviewing the available evidence to establish that there is sufficient evidence to bring the case to trial and that it is in the public interest to pursue criminal proceedings.”
Spencer, from Birmingham, will appear at North Staffordshire Justice Centre on 20 January 2026.
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