Strep A: Broomfield Hospital doctor gives advice to worried parents

An emergency ward doctor said people concerned about strep A symptoms should only come to hospital if it is "absolutely necessary", following a large rise in admissions from worried parents.

The infection has led to the deaths of nine children in the UK in recent months.

Dr Stephen Hughes, an emergency medicine consultant at Broomfield Hospital in Essex, told BBC Look East what symptoms people should look out for and said NHS 111 should be contacted in the first instance if strep A is suspected.

"If you come to a very crowded emergency department, you'll be in a waiting area that's densely packed with everybody coughing and sneezing and of course, that's ideal conditions for spread of these conditions," he said.

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8 December 2022