Office workers at a Scottish health board were deployed to perform hospital cleaning duties when the NHS was swamped by an outbreak of flu and respiratory illness, according to an article on the Telegraph website.

The "exceptional measures" were taken after Hairmyres, Wishaw and Monklands hospitals were inundated with sick people.

Office staff were asked to volunteer to go to the hospitals and healthcare centers over a five day period to perform cleaning and administrative duties. 

NHS reports suggest flu cases in Scotland have increased 26 percent in one week, more than doubled in two weeks and more than quadrupled in the last three weeks.

Elective or non-urgent procedures at Lanarkshire hospitals have now been postponed for the rest of the week due to the increased pressure on services.

Calum Campbell, the health board’s chief executive, said: "This is an unparalleled situation . . . and exceptional circumstances need exceptional measures to enable us to deliver our number one healthcare priority - patient safety.

"We asked our office-based staff to consider volunteering to suspend their 'day-job' to support their clinical colleagues, bearing in mind our key purpose and commitment as an organization to care for people who need our help."

The Royal Hospital for Children in Glasgow experienced a 44 percent increase in attendances, Inverclyde Royal Hospital a 34 percent spike and Wishaw General Hospital a 33 percent rise.

Read the full article.