The hospital I work in is so quiet

[QuietHospital]

London hospital.
Half empty. Some wards have less than a handful of patients, some wards are closed. Most staff have been moved to wards so are falling over selves. While their regular work goes undone.
A&E very quiet. I’ve sent patients there who are seen immediately. The heart attacks, strokes and appendicitis cases are presenting too late. People with covid are waiting too long to present. If you get breathless then for goodness sake come in. I’m so cross at the initial advice to stay home until struggling.
Had a look through covid ward lists and vast majority patients are aged over 70. Hardly any patients under 60, those who are have underlying health problems for the most part. Lots more men than women affected.
It’s just a snapshot but echoed by colleagues in other hospitals.
I think we can / should start to move back to normal life soon for the well young people among us. I fear for the short and longer term economic hit. It’s crazy to have all these young well people furloughed or made redundant.

If you or your family would stay struggling at home fine. Not many would.
This is exactly why people are afraid to go to A&E when they really need to and are staying at home for far too long struggling with heart attacks, strokes, appendicitis, cuts, suspected broken bones and other injuries... they’re too afraid to go to A&E in case some selfish cunt wanders in with coronavirus.

It is combined with this almost fanatical weekly clapping ritual. It's utterly bizarre.

^’it’s almost 14th century style collective worship, a ritual that will protect us from the plague. That’s probably where all the lockdown puritans are coming from too.

I'm a nurse I. A nursing home . I had to get the paramedics out as a resident had felled and broken her hip. I apologised for having to call them. They told me it was completely dead they hardly had any work as people were to scared to phone

@BovaryX because they needed treatment for stuff.

Because covid takes 14 days to show. All staff work on red and green wards and we don't have the correct protective equipment so we likely carry covid with us. And because people are admitted from the community with covid, don't have symptoms when they're put on a non covid ward and then suddenly start showing symptoms but by this point they've been in a bay with 5 other elderly people and they've all picked it up. It's uncontainable and spreads like wildfire.

Ezira

So you will stay home then, ok. Good.

Surely, the answer to empty non-Covid wards packed to the gunwales with HCPs unable to socially-isolate is to redeploy some of these people to relieve the pressure on the staff caring for Covid patients? Not just jump straight to lifting the lockdown?

I'm incredibly glad it's not overwhelming hospitals, but I do hope it doesn't turn out that some of the decisions less to poor outcomes.

A colleague is having a baby in a few weeks, and the maternity unit she has been going to has closed. The one she's been redirected to is 45 minutes drive rather than 5. She's low risk and hopefully will be fine, but it does feel like 40 minutes could make a difference in an emergency (and more risk of spreading the virus between areas I'd have thought). People seem quite worried it might be an excuse to close it permanently too (medium-sized semi-rural hospital).

My colleague’s father is undertaking treatment for terminal cancer. So far the tumours have shrunk or not changed size. He is 80, with a good fit quality of life. Independent, runs a house, drives etc. Last week he was told his treatment is on hold as he is at risk of catching COVID whilst going for his cancer treatment. So basically this man has been told to go home and probably die. Just disgraceful.

I think people will be in for a huge shock when the severity of it is revealed. Some reports are saying overall deaths are 50% higher than the hospital deaths being recorded now.

It will quickly become transparent when this is over and comparisons are made between previous years deaths numbers and 2020. No doubt they will then spin it that the high death rate is due to other causes.

How on earth do they know it's 4.41% if we're not doing any antibody/random tests to determine number of asymptomatic cases? All the countries I've heard of that have conducted random tests, have come up with about 50% asymptomatic rate. There was one I read about where 60 "healthy" people donated blood, and when the blood was checked, 40 of them were Covid positive and had no idea!

I mean at this rate it could be 4.41% or 50% like that Oxford paper suggested

All staff work on red and green wards and we don't have the correct protective equipment so we likely carry covid with us. And because people are admitted from the community with covid, don't have symptoms when they're put on a non covid ward and then suddenly start showing symptoms but by this point they've been in a bay with 5 other elderly people and they've all picked it up. It's uncontainable and spreads like wildfire

It's just horrendous. I think the NHS was totally dysfunctional before this. The global lack of PPE is just an additional problem oon top of the decaying, flawed 20th century anachronism which is unfit for purpose.

People being left too long without oxygen and care is awful.

You’ll get the odd poster fine with that, pp for example. But it’s not ok.

@PerspicaciaTick in my case at least, the almost empty ward I’m talking about IS a Covid Ward.

Green & red wards in my hospital are equally quiet & equally over staffed.

I need an ENT outpatients appointment for recurrent nose bleeds (7 since the 1st of March). Can't get an appointment in any hospital in Dublin. The risk is too high for the surgeon and me, for me to even be examined apparently. But I've been in very close contact with four paramedics and 4 doctors and 3 nurses while they were stuffing my nose with rapid rhino's to stop bleeding, or taking the rapid rhino's out, or spraying my nostril with a vasoconstricting spray. In fact if I didn't have to wait 8 hours to make sure my nose bleed had stopped before I was discharged from the A & E I would have been in and out in record time. All the scumbags, druggies and drunks are avoiding the A & E. It's literally empty. And of course with pubs and clubs shut and less traffic, its only people who have really need to go to A & E that are there. Our Chief Medical Officer was admitted overnight a few weeks ago to the same hospital and when he was discharged made a plea to people with chest pain, etc. not to be afraid to come into A & E. He said the wards are empty as well.

Some reports are saying overall deaths are 50% higher than the hospital deaths being recorded now.

No doubt, but this thread is about hospitals not treating sick people - not covid deaths outside hospital.

We are still fairly clueless on rate. Another antibody test was 3%.

No one is 'selfish' for seeking necessary medical help

You're right. But this is how people are being made to feel by some NHS staff.

There was a 'diary' by a doctor in the papers, yesterday I think. I'm sure his/her job is very stressful, but much of it just seemed to be about his/her own upset feelings at having to treat patients and deal with relatives. It was almost as if they were an inconvenience

I was talking to this with DH earlier.

The message has been, hospitals are overwhelmed, NHS is under the cosh.

So a lot of people will think, I don't want to bother them and use resources. I'll wait and see.

News item the other day about deaths due to late presentation and chap from NHS saying still come to hosp, it has been noticed.

I was reluctant to call GP after MH issues came back due to this. But I did and got phone appt quickly, drugs etc. They were very firm I should call if any probs. The phone was answered for appt much quicker than usual. I think people are avoiding doc because of idea others need it more.

I would encourage people not to ignore stuff on the basis that you're taking capacity, and call doc etc if you are ill.

No doubt, but this thread is about hospitals not treating sick people - not covid deaths outside hospital.

I'm clueless as to what that sentence means. Hospitals are empty because they are not admitting cv19 patients unless they literally cannot breathe. As a result they are dying at home. The two are interrelated.

Agree completely PerspicaciaTick Thousands of care home residents have been left without proper medical care. If there's healthcare staff going spare, they can start with the care homes. Ideally, if as OP says, some hospitals are quiet we could have separate hospitals for non Covid work. The difficulty I presume is, particularly places like London, many staff travel to work on public transport and risk getting Covid that way. I suspect that's partly why non Covid work has had to be postponed. The healthcare staff might unknowingly pass on Covid to already vulnerable patients. It's a no win situation unfortunately. The best we can hope for is one longer lockdown to allow decent limiting of spread. Rather than stop, start, stop, start lockdowns that mean neverending disruption to non Covid healthcare (and the wider economy).

Agree Marsha I very much hope journalists chooses to report responsibly.

much of it just seemed to be about his/her own upset feelings at having to treat patients and deal with relatives.

There’s always someone who wants their 5 mins of fame - being highly educated doesn’t make you immune from that. The NHS exists to treat patients, if it isn’t doing that then it serves no purpose.

My mum is on the management team for a private hospital in north yorkshire. They dont even have one patient at the minute and havent for 3 weeks.

There was a 'diary' by a doctor in the papers, yesterday I think. I'm sure his/her job is very stressful, but much of it just seemed to be about his/her own upset feelings at having to treat patients and deal with relatives. It was almost as if they were an inconvenience

Maybe I'm cynical but when I read stuff like this in MSM, it always seems like some Tory-commissioned piece to make us feel guilty and more compliant/less questioning of the lockdown situation.

I'm clueless as to what that sentence means.

There are more sick people than in the country than people who have covid? That’s not a revelation surely?

Maybe I'm cynical but when I read stuff like this in MSM, it always seems like some Tory-commissioned piece to make us feel guilty and more compliant/less questioning of the lockdown situation

I feel the same but re stories about underplaying it and lockdown should end too quickly. Feels like persuasion.

Can only hope no one listens to SM and uses better information.