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.

Of course lots of hospitals are quiet, you just have to look at the numbers of virus cases in different areas. If routine appointments and treatments etc have been cancelled and the hospitals haven’t got Covid cases then of course staff will have nothing to do. Don’t know why people think this is made up, the stats are out there for everyone to look at.

I am so angry at the scare mongering and lies coming out of the MSM every day. They are simply not interested in a thread like this.

Surely this makes a nonsense of the the whole lockdown situation

Nope. It puts a spotlight on 111 triage however.

And yes agree with Xenia ambulances have been an issue.

Sausage lockdown has been a nonsense from the start.

Xenia the Daily Mail aren't interested if it's not a drama.

Absolutely, it’s incredibly sinister. I had a mild but nasty case of the Covids and the 111 message is incredibly off putting, luckily I was fine but I’m sure lots of people aren’t getting the treatment they need because they’re being put off.

Nurse I don’t doubt you in particular (well no than anyone on here!) you haven’t pushed anything.

I do feel like we are being mobbed a bit on here, with either lack of critical thinking or SM fakery (as per that Twitter thread).

I love how people think that the media is 100% truth and honesty, so anyone not supporting that view must be a troll with an agenda. Newsflash, the media often lie and usually have a hidden agenda!

The NHS health advisers on the daily briefings have been very clear from the start that they DO want people who might otherwise die to go into hospital and A&E.

How does that gel with cancer treatments being cancelled? Sounds like that they want cancer patients to get so ill they need A&E and of course, by then, it's too late for treatment in most cases.

Same with GP surgeries cancelling regular blood tests which were apparently essential until a few weeks ago for ongoing monitoring. Now such patients aren't being monitored at all, so likely to be taking incorrect drug doses etc. Again, leading ultimately to A&E admissions or death when complications arise due to lack of ongoing monitoring.

Nhs negativity is gathering speed which will suit the Conservatives.

Posters shouldn't jump to the conclusion that because there are quiet hospitals or wards we should just end lockdown now. That would be foolish.

@Kazzyhoward cancer treatment has not been stopped in my trust.

Just been listening to our BBC local radio news. Headline was the record number of deaths over the past few weeks (highest for 2 decades), explaining some were due to Covid, but also that a few thousand were unexpected and blaming people for not getting treatment due to thinking A&E and GPs were closed. Nothing at all said about the NHS/GP actively stopping treatments which will also inevitably lead to death. Still blaming patients and no mention at all of the NHS's own part in the increased death rate. But hey-ho, there's no bias is there??

To be honest it’s hard enough to keep Covid free wards never mind Covid free hospitals. Dh says patients test negative, get sent to the non Covid ward, then a couple of days later have symptoms and test positive. One of his patients had two negative tests then a positive.
But as I say this virus is going to be around quite a while yet, we cannot suspend all other healthcare for that length of time.

Please could someone explain at what point breathing difficulties require a doctor/hospital? Is it just being a bit short of breath, or very short of breath, and I assume if you start to turn blue that's very serious and you should already be in hospital?

I have no plans to risk anyone's health by pinning my hopes on 111 - but would only go to A&E if absolutely necessary, hence my question above?

cancer treatment has not been stopped in my trust.

Well it has in ours. DH was half way through a course of treatment for a treatable cancer which has not only be cancelled, but there's also absolute silence from the oncology dept about if/when it will restart. All he can talk to is the receptionists who keep promising either a specialist nurse or consultant will phone us back, but no one ever phones. They've just thrown him to the wolves with a shocking lack of support or care.

Dh says patients test negative, get sent to the non Covid ward, then a couple of days later have symptoms and test positive.

Perhaps they get the virus when in hospital then?

How does that gel with cancer treatments being cancelled? Most cancer treatment is ongoing. Some chemo and treatment of haematological cancers has been delayed because it knocks out immunity and could push people into high risk of getting CV and being very unwell. It's about balancing risks.

Have read all this thread, and genuinely don't know what to think.

Just a couple of facts that I know from patients/staff at our large city hospital.
Cancer operations/treatment are going ahead, my friend's dad was operated on yesterday, another friend's son is receiving ongoing treatment.
There is a split A&E system, an entrance for suspected Covid and another one for the usual broken leg type stuff.
Wards are as busy as usual, the extra covid wards are busy, the ICU exceptionally so, due to the obvious.
A GP advised a relative to go straight to A&E if their breathing deteriorated, none of this wait until you're blue stuff we keep reading about, and they would be seen there, nothing about calling 111. Luckily, they improved and didn't need to do this.
Perhaps it's a regional thing?
I would add that at both the Downing St briefing, and the Scottish ones they have both urged, repeatedly, that people should still use hospitals as before, and that they are open 'for business as usual'. If people are staying away because they are scared, then it isn't the hospitals fault, is it?
I'm thinking the issue could be the 111 guidance and their response - perhaps they expected huge numbers to call thinking their 'cold symptoms' were Covid; so anticipating timewasters, they went to the other extreme, and advised people to stay at home until they were very unwell and their chances of recovery were diminished.

Having said that though, two thirds of those admitted to hospitals with suspected Covid test negative. That's a fact we hear on a daily basis.

This is why I don't know what to think ...

*Dh says patients test negative, get sent to the non Covid ward, then a couple of days later have symptoms and test positive.

Perhaps they get the virus when in hospital then?*

Around 1 in 3 tests appear to give false negatives, that's why in China, Italy and here they're presuming CV and treating as such if clinically indicated.

I would add that at both the Downing St briefing, and the Scottish ones they have both urged, repeatedly, that people should still use hospitals as before, and that they are open 'for business as usual'. If people are staying away because they are scared, then it isn't the hospitals fault, is it?

It's the stay home, protect the NHS campaign and also the many videos and twitter posts of medical staff saying stay home.

NurseJaques - how well you make my point.

I comment on a widely-discussed and apparently proven news story about sockpuppet accounts to push a particular point, and up you pop, with a username with 'Nurse' in it (well, ooh, you must clearly be a nurse then, as it's not like anyone on MN can change their name to be a nurse, or Jesus, or whatever the hell they like ) claiming that it's not true and actually it really is quiet.

Forgive me for being a tad cynical.

I only know anecdotally that cancer treatment has continued for a friend of mine.

But we are constantly being told by the politicians and their media allies that the hospitals are bursting at the seams with Covid patients what could be going on,maybe just possibly you could tell the scaremongerers (Piers Moron)what you are telling us,i for one want to get back to work and start earning again.

there is a new thread here today apparently commented on by NHS staff saying it's really quiet, there are no problems at all and indeed, we could remove lockdown soon

You’ve just made a massive reach with that post. The vast majority here not arguing there are ‘no problems’, nor for ‘removing lockdown soon’

Not everything is a fucking government conspiracy. If anything, this thread is indicating government cock-up. We’ve just seen the highest number of weekly deaths in the UK in 20 years and many of these are happening outside hospital. The government hardly wants to trumpet that in the street, surely? This thread for the most part isn’t about abandoning lockdown, it’s about a what a rational approach to current healthcare & improving Covid outcomes should be, because we don’t seem to have that right now.

For God’s sake, take your tinfoil hats off and engage with the discussion properly. Otherwise you’re actually doing the misinformation-mongers a favour.

I thought NurseJaques has been around forever, on MN at least, well before the virus.