Should we be concerned about increasing hospital admissions?

[GrannyBloomers]

With cases, admissions and deaths rising quite sharply again, I am wondering if people are concerned. I read that current numbers hopsitalised in Scotland with covid are the highest that they have been.

I appreciate that there are other worrying news stories burying this and that people are sick and tired of covid but it seems to me, that we could be heading towards a significant increase in not just cases but impact on the NHS again.

The whole point of restrictions was to keep the NHS functioning and rightly or wrongly I am concerned we could be about to find it even more crippled than it has been. From personal experience there is a little NHS care available - I know people with serious chronic conditions who cannot be care for by the GP and whose hospital clinics have closed due to lack of staff.

If restrictions were brought in to manage the impact of covid on the NHS, we might be ramping towards the fabled summer wave where restrictions are once again required.

Couldn’t care less to be honest. There are far more worrying things happening in the world than covid, everyone I know doesn’t give it a second thought anymore. It’s hard to worry about a disease I have managed to avoid catching without even trying for 2 years when innocent people are being killed in a war and the cost of living is rising on a daily basis!

@Katie517

Couldn’t care less to be honest. There are far more worrying things happening in the world than covid, everyone I know doesn’t give it a second thought anymore. It’s hard to worry about a disease I have managed to avoid catching without even trying for 2 years when innocent people are being killed in a war and the cost of living is rising on a daily basis!

I don't know what these these trends will translate into, but increasing coronavirus cases has knock on effects for costs of living, those in war torn countries, and refugees fleeing to the UK. It's a huge societal level problem that impacts all aspects of services and healthcare.

It's just naive to think that it shouldn't be dealt with because there are other problems, when it will directly impact services/bleed resources which are desperately needed @Katie517

I know more people now with covid then in last 2 years. Mild cold symptoms except my 83 yr old mum who had 2 really rough days but was fine after that.

I don't know why nobody in the country is talking about the social care crisis. Last figures I heard, our hospital trust had week in excess of 200 patients who no longer needed to be in hospital but we're waiting for community beds or packages of care. That is over 200 needs that sick people cannot be admitted to. There is no flow through the hospital's at the moment. Please do all you can to support your relatives home as soon as you can add this is a huge part of current issue.

connect dots
since covid began & testing was available there was always a high proportion of people IN hospital who had it -stating that most of the current number of people in hospital are those who came in for something else just confuses the true issue
The number of people have increased whether in hospital or out full stop. & immunity IS wearing out & the fourth booster is only valid for the most vulnerable or those over 75. Which excludes a lot of people who level of immunity maintenance is unknown. Those just under the cusp of 75 those with multiple health issues who do NOT come into this group & the unknown number of people who just have a lower level or strength of immunity anyway.

@FishFingerSandwiches4Tea Deepest condolences to you also ♥️So sorry to hear of your Dad. I've no parents left now in my early forties. He was such a kind, gentle man. Could not be with him according to Hospital rules until he deteriorated and I had the phonecall telling me to go to the hospital , he died quarter of an hour before we got there. Am traumatised and in shock over losing him and feel heartbroken that he was alone when he shouldn't have been. Thinking of you and sending love and stregnth. To hear some comments on hear along the lines of "I couldn't care less" are unbelievably hurtful. Feel so bereft and makes the loss seem worse if that's possible.

@vdbfamily absolutely this
brexit meant a lot of NHS staff & careworker left & have not been replaced thanks to our narrow minded politicians who couldn't organize a whatsit in a brewery - they seem unable to figure out consequences or do any lateral thinking or long term planning & are slow reactive thinkers

In the old days of cottage hospitals & convalescent homes we had plenty of places for people to recuperate & plan for home care. Now care support is on its knees

@Myfanwy81 & @FishFingerSandwiches4Tea
my sympathy to you & your family

I tested positive yesterday and had to call 111 to access antivirals. The call handler I spoke to and then the clinician both said they've been inundated with calls from people with covid. The clinician said that I was the fifth person she'd spoken to yesterday morning who was CEV and just tested positive. She also said that my local hospital is 'extremely busy' with covid.

DD is a teacher and loads of the teachers are off with it. The kids have been coming in with what the staff have dubbed 'the mystery cold' but none of them are testing anymore. That's clearly where our dose has come from (me and DH barely go out and don't spend time in close contact with anyone).

Am I worried? Not especially. Cases and hospitalisations were always going to increase when restrictions ended. It's awful that deaths are increasing and from a personal pov, being CEV, being positive is a bit scary (although it's the fifth time for me so I'm an old hand now!).

The one thing that shouldn't have gone, or be going for a while, is testing imo. If those kids going to DD's school were testing when unwell, for example, they'd have stayed home. I know isolation is not always possible, particularly if you're going to lose income to do so. But the message that you no longer need to test and that they'll be ending in a couple of weeks anyway makes people think covid isn't an issue anymore, when it absolutely is - particularly if you're CEV.

Typical

You say it’s an issue for CEV ‘like you’ but then you say you’ve had it 5 times so clearly it’s not a big issue for you? I know several people CEV still obsessed about covid yet they’ve had it mildly 2/3 times!

I guess it's because the older people had the booster first which is now waning. I don't know what the answer is as I don't think people will comply with long term restrictions. There is no way I want my children missing more time in education to protect old people from covid. For most people it's a mild illness. I think the vaccination programme and any restrictions will need to be targeted rather than aimed at everyone . Neither me or my children will be getting any more vaccines done.

@Watapalava

Typical

You say it’s an issue for CEV ‘like you’ but then you say you’ve had it 5 times so clearly it’s not a big issue for you? I know several people CEV still obsessed about covid yet they’ve had it mildly 2/3 times!

This is the first time I've had it while I've been severely immunosuppressed (I started new drugs a few months ago). Before then I was group six for vaccines/CV because of my condition (RA) and the not quite so immunosuppressant drugs I was on. Now I'm CEV, had my fourth jab last week and am eligible for antivirals. Covid has been much more of a worry for me since I started my new medication, which coincided with DD starting teaching (she lives at home).

I've no idea how this infection will pan out, I certainly feel worse today than I've felt with previous infections. I'm certainly not obsessed with covid but I've given up a lot of the things I love doing because if it. At least once this bout is over with I'll have a few weeks grace, perhaps I'll get to go to my first gig in almost three years!

@LizDoingTheCanCan

Speaking to a local GP (a friend, can't get to see my GP), they're concerned with the rising number of older people becoming very unwell.

Also, a friend's cancer surgery was cancelled last week due to lack of bed capacity, they'll contact her again in two weeks when they 'hope' to be able to reschedule.

I'm concerned for disabled and vulnerable people, yes. But the government never cared about them in the first place.

Oh please! Did you miss the part where we’ve had to live under restrictions for best part of two years to protect them? Funny how quickly people dropped their “for the many not the few mantra”

@VanCleefArpels

The “hospital admissions” figures include those that go to hospital for other reasons and discover, on testing, that they have Covid. They are there “with” Covid not “because of” Covid.

On the other side of this, the Admissions number don't include those who go in for something else and catch covid there, but become very ill due to the covid infection rather than their initial health complaint.

It works both ways.

@StarCat2020

I was reading about the old fever / isolation hospitals earlier on.

Obviously they all closed down years ago but it made me think.

I live in an estate built in the site of what has previously been an isolation hospital, among other forms of hospital in its time, It's interesting reading about its history. We also used to have open air clinics, hospital units and schools locally for those who were ill with various conditions.

TypicalMe - has the antiviral infusion helped at all?

I found it made a difference fairly quickly to the more concerning symptoms, and that I started to test negative very quickly afterwards. I did have ongoing symptoms - like a heavy cold and tight chest - but the more difficult breathlessness did ease a fair bit.

It's possible that if more older people are becoming more ill we should be expanding the group eligible for the antiviral treatment. However, this does require them to be PCR tested very quickly (maybe we need some of the very rapid PCR tests as used by some travel firms to speed this up) as it needs to be given by day 5 and before symptoms develop too much, the sooner it's given the better.

@Abraxan I'm still waiting for my local hospital to call me back, 111 said it would be within 24 hours and to call them again if I hadn't heard by then. So 4pm-ish.

You don't need a PCR now to access antivirals, a positive LFT will do. Which makes sense really, waiting for a PCR result means a big chunk of the five day limit is taken up, particularly if you have to post your test back. I have a priority one in the house but I was told I didn't need to do it. I suppose the quicker you get started, the better.

If you don't mind me asking, what were your more concerning symptoms? I've got a burning feeling in my chest (like I've been running), breathlessness which at the moment is quite minor, chills and aches. And just feel lousy generally. I'm a bit concerned that it's not even 24 hours since I rested positive and I already feel pretty yuck. Are you ok now?

@Myfanwy81 I am so sorry for your loss. I care. Please don't focus on the posts that are hurting you, they come from people who have consistently minimised all the way through.

Oh please! Did you miss the part where we’ve had to live under restrictions for best part of two years to protect them? Funny how quickly people dropped their “for the many not the few mantra”

It is overwhelmingly the vulnerable who have lived with the restrictions and often in appalling conditions. The government did not protect vulnerable people they largely locked them up and in the case of care homes allowed infected people into the homes.

The lockdowns enabled the rest of society to continue to function to some extent by reducing spread of disease and keeping most of the workforce working.

hmm Oh please! Did you miss the part where we’ve had to live under restrictions for best part of two years to protect them? Funny how quickly people dropped their “for the many not the few mantra”

Not sure where you're getting your information from, but I'd suggest a different source @Phos, and some critical thinking.

We needed restrictions to prevent a catastrophic number of the population becoming ill or needing to isolate in a short time period.

Your perfectly healthy self directly benefitted from these restrictions, seeing as it meant you would still be able to get medical care if you needed it (for appendictis say, or emergency surgery after a car crash), food infrastructure still in place, and all those other services you depend on.

It's mind boggling that after two years people still don't get this and trot out abelist nonsense instead.

Oh please! Did you miss the part where we’ve had to live under restrictions for best part of two years to protect them? Funny how quickly people dropped their “for the many not the few mantra”

'For the many not the few' was with regards to the richest and most privileged in society (the few) as opposed to the rest of us (the many).

Are you really equating extremely vulnerable people who live with severe/chronic illness and for whom every day is a struggle, pandemic or not, with multimillionaires?

What a strange conflation, particularly given that restrictions were intended to ease pressure on the NHS and prevent it being overwhelmed for everyone. Not just the vulnerable.

That's good to know re PCR TypicalMe.

I spoke to my gp as didn't hear back automatically. Once I'd spoken to him I had a call the same day from the hospital and was asked to go in that day - it was day 5 by then so needed to be done that same day. The PCR need obviously took up extra valuable time hence the speed towards the end.

My worst symptoms, in terms of making me feel more poorly, was the intense breathlessness of any form of exertion. Just going upstairs I needed to sit down and get it back under control.

The first time, before antivirals and vaccines, I had a really big issue with my blood pressure which resulted in hospital admission. I'd been left with some breathlessness, chest tightness and some chest pain since then anyway but these got worse.

24 hours after the antivirals the worst of these subsided a lot. And I started to test negative just after that too. Even now, 6 weeks later I have some issues ongoing, but no worse than prior to infection two.

Are you ok now?

I was already diagnosed with long covid from infection 1, in October 2020, but this second infection, in January 2022, hasn't made any of those symptoms worse.

Had my 4th jab yesterday, so hoping that boosts he antibodies a bit more as my school has a number of cases again at the moment.

I hope you start to feel much better soon.

I do think it’s now time to move on frankly. The sooner the daily figures used by activist groups like independent sage to whip people into a frenzy are stopped, the better.

I do think though that we need to look at why so many people are catching covid while in hospital with other things. Clearly there is an issue with infection control procedures.

Hospital acquired infections have been an issue throughout the last 2 years but this doesn’t suit the agenda of ‘protecting our NHS’ and ‘selfish rule breakers ’ so has largely been ignored.

Hopefully we can soon move on from screaming “YOU DON’T CARE ABOUT PEOPLE LIKE ME” at each other. There have been aspects of restrictions that have been much worse for me than for my CEV sibling, as well as those that have been much worse for him. I have been made vulnerable by restrictions in themselves, I’m not the only one.

I have always been concerned about hospital admissions, but I’m an HCP, it’s something I have always paid attention to.