29 July 2010 Last updated at 03:40 ET

Call for action over 'overstretched' A&E in Coventry

Emergency action is needed to deal with demand at an overstretched accident and emergency department, a hospital director has warned.

Brendan Connor, non-executive director at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS, called for an urgent meeting with NHS commissioners.

He told a trust board meeting that on one day last month, 550 patients were seen in the A&E department in Coventry.

It has seen a 20% rise in patients from Warwickshire and 4% from Coventry.

He told the board: "We haven't got the space to accommodate that many people.

"We would have to build and we are not in a position to do that. We need to find alternative ways of treating them."

A consultation is currently under way over plans to stop a 24-hour urgent care service at the Hospital of St Cross Rugby, which is also run by the trust.

Hospital bosses said the service, which is not a comprehensive A&E service, is getting little use and different options were being considered.

The trust board meeting also discussed how changes to the Rugby service could impact on the A&E in Coventry.