NHS hospitals have been told to cancel operations in an effort to free up 30,000 beds to create space for an expected surge in coronavirus patients.

In a letter to NHS bosses today NHS England said hospitals should look to cancel all non-urgent surgeries for at least three months starting from 15 April.

Hospitals were given discretion to begin winding down activity immediately to help train staff and begin work setting up makeshift intensive care wards.

Any cancer operations and patients needing emergency treatment will not be affected.

The measures come as the UK death toll rose to 71 as the Department of Health and Social Care said there were now 1,950 confirmed cases. The chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance told MPs on Tuesday as many as 55,000 people could have been infected by the virus.

The letter from NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens said: “The operational aim is to expand critical care capacity to the maximum; free up 30,000 (or more) of the English NHS’s 100,000 general and acute beds.

“Assume that you will need to postpone all non-urgent elective operations from 15 April at the latest, for a period of at least three months. However you also have full local discretion to wind down elective activity over the next 30 days as you see best, so as to free up staff for refresher training, beds for Covid-19 patients, and theatres/recovery facilities for adaptation work.”

In the meantime hospitals were told to do as much elective surgery, such as hip operations and knee replacements, as possible and to use private sector hospitals which it said could free up 12,000 to 15,000 beds across England.

Sir Simon also said patients who did not need to be in hospital should be discharged as quickly as possible adding: “Community health providers must take immediate full responsibility for urgent discharge of all eligible patients identified by acute providers on a discharge list. For those needing social care, emergency legislation before parliament this week will ensure that eligibility assessments do not delay discharge.

“This could potentially free up to 15,000 acute beds currently occupied by patients awaiting discharge or with lengths of stay over 21 days.”

Sir Simon also said patients who did not need to be in hospital should be discharged as quickly as possible adding: “Community health providers must take immediate full responsibility for urgent discharge of all eligible patients identified by acute providers on a discharge list. For those needing social care, emergency legislation before Parliament this week will ensure that eligibility assessments do not delay discharge.

“This could potentially free up to 15,000 acute beds currently occupied by patients awaiting discharge or with lengths of stay over 21 days.”

Sir Simon also revealed the health service is block-buying beds in private sector hospitals which will be completed within two weeks and will be available for use by the NHS. In addition social care companies have been asked to free up community beds within the next two weeks.

Both steps would release around 10,000 beds.

As well as freeing up beds, Sir Simon said it was vital that NHS staff got the training they will need to care for patients who need respiratory support.

Sir Simon told trusts they had two weeks to deliver refresher training for “all clinical and patient facing staff” and he said the NHS had “as a matter of urgency” raised with Public Health England the need for NHS staff who may be forced to isolate for 14 days the ability to be tested.

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He added for those staff affected by the isolation rules “staff should – on an entirely voluntary basis – be offered the alternative option of staying in NHS-reimbursed hotel accommodation while they continue to work.”

Other key steps being taken by the NHS on Tuesday include simplifying the way hospitals are paid with money provided “on block” from April to July.