ST HELENS and Whiston were among hospitals across the country struggling to cope during the first week of the year.

In the week ending Sunday, January 8, St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust issued a 'level 3' alert every day.

This alert indicates that the local health and social care system is experiencing major pressures, compromising patient flow.

On Tuesday, January 3, the trust tweeted, asking people not to go to A&E unless it was an emergency.

The trust was one of 65 hospital trusts issuing warnings that they were facing heavy pressure during the first week of 2017.

A spokeswoman for St Helens & Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust said: "Like many across the country, our hospitals have been extremely busy.

"OPEL status levels are an indication of the operational pressure being experienced across a local area which includes acute trusts, social care, community care and primary care and help the NHS to understand where additional support might be required.

"These status levels can frequently change throughout the day and this information is therefore a snapshot in time."

She added: "We continue to work closely with local health and social care services to ensure that everyone in our community gets the care and treatment they need."

The Operational Pressures Escalation Level reached 3 for many trusts over the Christmas and New Year period - and a small number issued level 4 alerts, meaning patient care and safety could be compromised.

British Medical Association chiefs said the number of warnings issued "shows the scale of the crisis in our NHS at the moment".