Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich has been treating patients in corridors as winter pressures start to creep in.

Neil Mundy, from Plumstead, was surprised by what he saw when he attended the accident and emergency unit on November 1.

He was there with his daughter when they were sent to the urgent care unit, where they were met with people begin treated in the corridor.

Neil and his daughter had to wait over four hours to be seen by a doctor and were then sent around the hospital because of the people in the corridor.

There were patients on beds being treated and to give them privacy the hospital provided room dividers.

Neil told News Shopper: “Much of it was covered but I could see a few beds with people wired up to machines and they had nurses there keeping an eye out.”

His photo of the situation at the hospital has been shared hundreds of times on Facebook and people have been commenting with their own experiences, including one woman who claims her very elderly father was left laying on a bed in the corridor for six hours.

Neil said he wants to make people aware of how stretched the NHS is especially over the winter months.

He wants people to stop using A&E for colds and go to the chemist instead.

He said: “If you look back about 30 years ago when the population was lot lower in the area we had three hospitals, St Nicholas, Brook General Hospital and QE. The issue is, the government always finds money for others things not NHS.”

A report from NHS Providers has provided "warning signs" that the coming winter is likely to be even more difficult than the last for NHS trusts.

The body, that represents trusts, says several factors including A&E waiting times and staff shortages suggest problems for hospitals in the months ahead.

Between April and September at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, which is responsible for QE Hospital, 76,287 people attended an emergency department, with 81 per cent being admitted, transferred or discharged within four hours.

The government target is 95 per cent.

The Lewisham and Greenwich figure for this year is lower than the same period in 2017 when 89 per cent of patients were seen within four hours.

NHS Providers believes the coming winter is likely to put more strain on trusts than the last.

Deputy chief executive Saffron Cordery said: "Performance is in a worse position going into this winter than last. Staff shortages are growing, putting additional strain on a workforce already overstretched during an exceptionally busy summer."

Donna Kinnair, acting chief executive and general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, said: "Staff are doing all they can, but demand is outstripping supply and winter 2018 could be the one that brings services to a standstill.

"The signs in the Providers' report are ominous - increasing demand, worsening A&E performance and a yawning chasm in nurse numbers."

A spokeswoman at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust said: ““We see many more A&E patients during the winter months, which is why we’re opening a new clinical facility in December with an extra 44 beds.

“A&E is for emergencies only so we urge people to use pharmacies, GPs and NHS 111 where appropriate.

“Our staff work hard to ensure all patients are treated as quickly as possible whilst maintaining their privacy and dignity.”