THE boss of an NHS call centre in Nottingham says his staff have been "incredibly busy" dealing with people worried they may have swine flu.

People in Notts are being advised to consider a free information line and NHS website before calling, to ease pressure on workers.

Since April 27, NHS Direct lines across England have received 190,000 calls about swine flu.

Nigel Nice, regional director for NHS Direct in the East Midlands – which is based in Sneinton – said his staff were doing their "utmost" to cope with demand.

He said: "We have been incredibly busy. We are dealing with a significant number of calls relating to swine flu.

"There is an increased number of calls but they are often much longer because there are calls where there a lot of people in a household.

"If people can access the NHS website they can do checks in their own time and at their own speed."

Dr Nice admitted some callers were suffering delays when they called the 0845 4647 service at busy times.

He said: "We will always have periods when we get a lot of calls hitting the service."

The Evening Post revealed yesterday that GPs were worried they may not be able to cope with the rising number of swine flu calls.

City medics were due to attend health events in Aspley and the Broxtowe estate this month, but will now stay at their practices due to the volume of calls.

Credit card firm Capital One yesterday confirmed three of their workers in Nottingham had been diagnosed with the disease.

Nottingham was named a hotspot for the swine flu earlier this month – hours before the Department of Health admitted the disease could not be contained.

Health officials said the majority of cases were mild – though as many as three people with no underlying health problems may have died from the disease nationwide.

Anyone can visit www.nhs.uk to check symptoms, or call the flu information Line on 0800 151 3513.

Bosses say good hygiene can cut risks of spreading viruses.

robert.parsons@nottingham eveningpost.co.uk