HEALTH chiefs have renewed their plea to Ayrshire residents to only attend A&E at the area's hospitals if they have a critical emergency or need urgent care.

Bosses at NHS Ayrshire and Arran say the emergency departments at University Hospital Ayr and University Hospital Crosshouse "continue to experience significant pressures", and that demand has increased over the last few weeks.

Joanne Edwards, the health board's director of acute services, said: “NHS Ayrshire & Arran continues to experience significant and sustained pressures across our health and care system, but the safety of patients and staff remains our top priority.

“The demands on our emergency departments have increased in recent weeks with patients waiting for significantly longer than usual to be seen and assessed.

“We continue to prioritise those patients who require urgent care. How long you will wait will depend on the seriousness of your condition and how many patients with more serious or urgent needs arrive in the department while you are waiting.

“To help alleviate these pressures and make sure patients are seen as quickly as possible, we are asking the public to only attend the emergency department if they have a critical emergency or require urgent care.”

According to the most recent figures from Public Health Scotland, only 67.2 per cent of A&E attendees in Ayrshire and Arran were seen within four hours - the Scottish Government target - in the week ending Sunday, October 9, only slightly better than the Scotland-wide figure of 64.2 per cent.

At University Hospital Ayr the figure for the same week was just 60.6 per cent, while at Crosshouse it was 70.2 per cent.

In a medical emergency always dial 999. If it's not an emergency, contact NHS 24 by calling 111 and you'll be directed to the most appropriate service.