To wonder why was the hospital empty today?

[SpicyEnchiladas]

Can someone please explain this if they knew. We live in one of the highest areas of cases of covid in the north west, and are constantly told by the local papers about our hospitals not coping at all!

So my friend had a car accident on boxing day and although she wasn't visibly injured, she was taken to the hospital to check that she's fine as she was very shaken after that. She dreaded going with the medics and avoided going to the hospital for the fear of long queues and catching Covid! She was seen after 10 minutes, had her x-rays taken, two consultants checked on her and was done within an hour!! When she came back home she said that they were only a few patients inside and it all went smoothly. Much better than her experience in hospitals before Covid.

Today, I had to drop my mum off to the A&E for severe pain in head and ears. She was fainting and couldn't even walk but they didn't let me in with her as per the guidelines. TBH what's what we expected anyway. I left her after the nurse reassured me that they will keep a close eye on her in case if she faints again in the waiting area. I left and before getting in my car, I received a call asking me to return to the hospital as she will be transferred to the ambulatory care immediately. They said that it's fine to have me with her to provide company and reassurance as it's likely that she'll be there for a few hours.

We stayed for nearly 4 hours, during that time I've been in and out of the department to use the phone, move my car from the drop off area, go to the pharmacy... it was nearly empty!! Only a few nurses insight. I was actually a bit scared whilst walking to the hospital's pharmacy as it was all dark all the way. Very quiet and unusual!! There were 5 people in the ambulatory care and plenty of empty beds and patient rooms.
I noticed the same whilst passing other departments.

I'm not doubting that Covid is indeed straining the nhs, but can someone explain why was the hospital not busy and nearly empty on both occasions despite us being constantly told that a&e isn't coping in our town?

Basically hospitals have been split into red/green areas Covid patients and non Covid patients have completely different pathways in the hospital. So effectively two areas of A&E. Your friend would I assume have been seen on green pathway part came of A&E/minor injuries. Thankfully this has been quiet. Please don't assume the rest of the hospital or Covid pathway area of A&E was quiet. It won't have been. NHS staff are like swans....calm and cool on the surface and kicking like crazy underneath trying to keep afloat. Glad your friend has made a good recovery.

@nicky7654

Because thousands of other treatments have been cancelled. Cancer treatment, heart scans etc cancelled!!!

It's terrible isn't it 😔 @nicky7654

Because they went to the non Covid bit. During first lockdown I broke my elbow, I was in x-rayed and out within an hour. Had I had Covid no doubt I would have had a completely different experience.

@Toddlerteaplease

My hospitals A&E has been unusually quiet since Covid. Before it never had under 120 patients at any one time. Yesterday at 2pm it had 42. The lowest I've ever seen. We are merged with the ward next door over Christmas. So very over staffed, and short notice annual leave has been allowed. No sign of adults needing help.

This is so alarming to read as every article you read is stated how understaffed wards are. Can people not be redeployed if this is the case rather than being able to take short notice leave?

people are too scared to go to hospital. lots of activities are closed so fewer accidents and injuries, not so many people out drinking , so fewer injuries.

clinics are cancelled.

the green side is depleted to transfer staff to the red side which is heaving. It is very concerning that the green side is so deserted because the red side is taking most of the resources.

my local hospital is same. my mum works there as a nurse and everyday i hear in news its struggling etc and how its over capacity. Its dead! There's noone in there but because there are only 7 ITU beds its full/over capacity in theory. In real world most staff sat around quiet unless on critical care

The non covid side of things is quiet due to cancelled lists and clinics.....because the staff have generally being pulled into the covid side. For which you would have had no access.

Plus no visiting, some non clinical staff may be working from home, people avoiding a&e if they can.....🤷‍♀️

The hospitals are divided into zones..the sickest patients will be in blue zones..covid suspected and will be in resus or majors. 1 way systems have been set up to keep flow separate. Amber zones of query covid likely to be majors and minors. Then urgent care which is supposed to be green so no covid patients at all. When hospitals state they are overwhelmed..don't expect football crowds. It literally means that patients are very sick needing 1:1 care but other patients need to be triaged so there are competing priorities and less staff to help

All hospitals are 'quiet' on a bank holiday. Of course that doesn't mean the wards are empty, far from it, but a lot of services such as clinics, therapists, pharmacy, radiology, pathology, medical secretaries will not be running or running a skeleton service only - hence quieter car parks, corridors etc. I'm quite sure you didn't have a tour of the wards where I doubt you'd see an abundance of empty beds, but obviously there won't be the bustle of a week day. Yes the wards are staffed 24/7 (with exhausted and stressed individuals) but many other services are not.

@EverythingsComingUpRoses

Because it was Boxing Day and New Year's Day so no clinics operating and all patients will have been on the wards not being allowed visitors?

Just a random stab in the dark...

I had a routine appointment. It was very quiet because they have to adhere to SD.

I haven't read the rest of the responses so apologies if this is repeated, but Accident and Emergency departments are no longer bursting at the seams because people are now only using for genuine accidents and emergencies, rather than for a splintered finger. This is the service they should be providing but haven't been able to because the services have been abused for so long.

And re: Covid, they're not going to have all of their Covid patients down in A&E; they're in wards where any average Joe from the public can't just walk in and sit next to them.

Not all hospitals are cancelling treatments thankfully @nicky7654, I’m in a tier 4 area, I had treatment for an ongoing condition last week and a clinical measurements appointment yesterday. I’m back in on Monday and have been assured my other appointments are going ahead as planned. Radiotherapy is also continuing as normal for a relative.

It was bank holiday so no outpatients clinics meaning no people. Less staff working because no outpatients clinics. Its really not hard to work out
And yes no Gp referrals because its a bank holiday, so less patients. No elective surgery because its been cancelled and also bank holiday

Covid suspected patients go to red areas, non covid green. A&e is stil busy with trivial stuff bit trivial stuff tends to not come on bank holiday!

So basically the answer is it was a bank holiday.

[quote ADairyDe]@Xenia couldn’t agree more. I paid almost 2k in medical expenses last year because the nhs was too busy. Well fine, but please refund me the extortionate tax you take to provide with me one very limited service relating to one virus. That’s not an insurance policy I would take out at any cost at all, thanks.[/quote]
I assume that you would have been happy to use A&E should there have been a problem with the procedure/operation that you had?

Or that you'd like to avail yourself of A&E should you be involved in an RTA?

It's extraordinary how, however many times it happens, some people refuse to understand that the private sector is propped up from all side by the public sector.

Dyspraxic with a dyspraxic son and mum! So a and e is a pastime for us!

There are no broken ankled women from falling off heels, no drunken pub fights, no slight colds, no PE injuries, less sporting injuries, less petty compensation injuries (have seen a lot), less work injuries (bank holiday).

Also

When ds had appendicitis in June, because he had a temperature, until he had a negative test back, he was sent straight up to the children's ward and onto a private room.
We didn't even get through the door of A&E before they took his temperature and grabbed a wheelchair to get him up there.

So if you'd been in A&E at the time, you might have thought there wasn't anyone there with potential covid-because they wouldn't have been sitting there with you.

Interestingly we also were at A&E with a potential broken finger the week before lockdown too. It was also quiet. They said they weren't seeing people for the minor injuries that people thought they better check "in case".
In fact I considered just strapping his fingers up, as that was pretty certainly all they would have done if they had been broken, but concluded it was better to go then rather than have complications a week down the line.

Have you ever walked trough a hospital at night. Wards are full but it’s quiet, similar to now as patients have to remain on wards. No visitors are in. I had to drop DH is hospital a few years back, he was admitted at 4am and as I wandered aimlessly trying to find the bloody way out (at night you have to go through A&E to get out as the front doors are locked). I met one person who gave me duff directions!

My brothers operation was cancelled twice earlier in the year and finally he got it on November as they kept closing to non urgent cases. Your little snapshot is not how things actually are.

@Xenia

We could go back to the old days before nhs was created and let the poor die and suffer if they can't afford treatment.

You can keep that 20% and spend it on yourself

I received a similar text from my GP "NHS England have advised that all non-essential work to be stopped to allow General Practice to cope with the overwhelming demand relating to Covid-19. This means we are open for any acute deterioration in long term conditions and any new symptoms indicating potentially serious disease" I take this to mean stay away!!
I'm in a London borough - same borough my sister has had her breast cancer op cancelled twice.. No new date scheduled.
My friend also same London borough has had her heart op cancelled twice. She's in pain most days and was told they don't know when they'll be able to see her.
Both my sister and my friend had their ops cancelled both times the day before the op. It's a form a mental torture on top of their physical suffering..

Many people avoid going if they can right now.

Did you take a look at the part if A&E that was for Covid? Or the Covid wards? Or HDU? Or ICU??

OP, if you didn't know that routine appointments have been cancelled and treatments put on hold you must have been living under a rock.

@MyFavouritePlace

I received a similar text from my GP "NHS England have advised that all non-essential work to be stopped to allow General Practice to cope with the overwhelming demand relating to Covid-19. This means we are open for any acute deterioration in long term conditions and any new symptoms indicating potentially serious disease" I take this to mean stay away!! I'm in a London borough - same borough my sister has had her breast cancer op cancelled twice.. No new date scheduled. My friend also same London borough has had her heart op cancelled twice. She's in pain most days and was told they don't know when they'll be able to see her. Both my sister and my friend had their ops cancelled both times the day before the op. It's a form a mental torture on top of their physical suffering..

Yes, they're saying stay away unless you're unwell either with a change in a long-term condition or new symptoms that might be indicative of a serious health condition.

They're not saying don't call for a phone consultation or don't phone if you've found out that you're pregnant or if your child has an ear infection, they're saying we're postponing routine sexual health, over 50s, diabetic, mental health checks and not doing procedures like freezing veruccas at the moment.

Cancelling of ops at short-notice is horrendously stressful. Not knowing when the op is rescheduled for is even more horrendously stressful.

But in the context of historic under-funding and staff shortages in the NHS, combined with the current situation of up to 25% of staff either ill with covid or having to self-isolate in some trusts and medics being deployed within the NHS to ensure that ITUs are staffed, what on earth are GPs meant to do?

@Xenia I'm sure those doctors and nurses sweating their bollocks off in PPE would love to hear you say 'the NHS is not really there when you need it' !

Our local hospital is busy with Covid, not many elderly people in there though. The ward are full of people in their 30s and 40s struggling with Covid