The Princess Elizabeth Hospital is currently over capacity with non-urgent operations being postponed or cancelled.
A critical incident has been declared with anything classed as an ‘elective surgery’ affected.
All cancer and emergency surgeries “continue to be prioritised” said a spokesperson for Health and Social Care.
So far, two operations have been postponed today and one has been cancelled for tomorrow.
HSC has warned that further disruption is expected – with the emergency department, community nursing team, and the ambulance and rescue service all reporting increased demand.
There’s “no single factor” driving the current high level of admissions at the hospital, added HSC, with wards and the emergency department both busy.
It said that temporary beds are being used to manage the current increased demand across the PEH.
Community teams have also taken on additional work to help support patients being discharged from the hospital. This is in turn creating additional pressure within community services that also has to be managed said the spokesperson.
While the current heatwave is not to blame, everyone is encouraged to stay safe in the sun by keeping hydrated, using sun protection, and checking in on those who may be vulnerable, to avoid adding additional pressure at the hospital.
The ambulance and rescue service is blaming the heat for the increased demand its staff experienced over the bank holiday weekend.
Between midnight on Saturday morning and midnight on Monday night crews responded to 79 calls.
The busiest period was Sunday night when they responded to 21 cases during their 14 hour nightshift. This compares to the normal daily average of 19 calls in 24 hours.
The team in Alderney also responded to 10 cases during the three day weekend.
“The current hot weather is likely to have contributed to some of the cases,” said a spokesperson.
“We would ask islanders to follow the hot weather guidance we published last week on our social media channels.”