The NHS 111 helpline in Gloucestershire referred more callers to A&E in December, figures reveal.

The increase in both A&E referrals and the number of patients admitted to hospital across England shows the strain the NHS is under, the healthcare research group the Nuffield Trust says.

NHS England data shows the Gloucestershire 111 line recommended 1,478 A&E visits in December – 54.3 percent more than during the same month in 2018.

Of the calls assessed at the centre, 10 percent ended with a referral to emergency departments – up from 9.4 percent in December the previous year.

NHS 111 is a 24-hour helpline for patients seeking non-urgent medical help, which replaced NHS Direct and some GP out-of-hours services in 2014.

​Across England, more than 120,000 callers to the 111 helpline were referred to A&E in December – more than in any other month since records began in 2010.

Sarah Scobie, deputy director of research at the Nuffield Trust, said the findings underlined the pressure on the NHS.

“Not only are there significant numbers of people turning up to A&E – more than 2.1 million people attended A&E in December - but more people than in previous years are also deemed ill enough to have to be admitted into hospital,” she added.

“It is going to take time and money and, crucially, staff for this pressure to ease in the long run.”

An ambulance was sent for 17.1 percent of the ​14,700 calls assessed in Gloucestershire in December.