'Selfish' New Year drinkers 'getting blotto' will damage health service, warns NHS chief

The chief of NHS England has warned the country's health service is becoming a 'national hangover service' and slammed drinkers "getting blotto" as "selfish".

Simon Stevens said the health service was currently under strain as a result of winter emergencies, with figures showing hospitals will also be dealing with an increase in alcohol-related admissions over New Year.

And the level of alcohol-related admissions is set to have an impact on the health service as a whole, with funds from other areas reportedly being diverted to deal with the problem.

"At a time of year when hospitals are always under pressure, caring for a spike in winter emergencies, it's really selfish to get so blotto that you end up in an ambulance or A&E," Stevens said in an interview with The Telegraph.

"More than a third of A&E attendances at peak times are caused by drunkenness. Casualty nurses and doctors are understandably frustrated about the NHS being used as a national hangover service," he explained.

International research suggests Britain is among the worst countries for high levels of binge drinking, illegal drug use and sexually transmitted diseases - all of which have a knock-on impact on the country's health service, even more so during the festive period.

"In our towns and cities this Christmas and new year, the paramedic called to a drunk partygoer passed out on the pavement is an ambulance crew obviously not then available for a genuine medical emergency," Stevens added.