COVID sitrep: We are definitely now entering another wave of hospital admissions in the UK. In the NHS Trust where I work, we are admitting more COVID-19 patients to hospital and more to intensive care, although the pattern seems different to the winter.... 1/8
What we are seeing locally in east London fits with the national pattern of infection rates. The number of patients coming to our hospital group who test positive for COVID had dwindled to single figures but is now back up to 40+ each day and rising. 2/8
Hospital admissions are rising too. Both older patients yet to take up the invitation to be vaccinated, and young fit patients in their 20’s and 30’s who have not yet had the chance. There are ~1500 COVID patients in NHS hospitals. The January peak was just under 40,000. 3/8
Still very early in this wave but it does seem that fewer ICU patients are needing a ventilator. Many are managing with mid-level support from devices such as CPAP and High-Flow Nasal Oxygen which is good news. We currently have 250 COVID patients in ICU beds across the UK. 4/8
Looking at the pattern across the UK, the north-west of England seems to have most COVID cases and around one third of the hospital and ICU in-patients. London hospitals are treating about one fifth of the UK patients. 5/8
Putting this all together, vaccination does seem to be having a big impact despite the rising infection rate. Fewer patients are coming to hospital and fewer are getting seriously ill. Please accept the vaccine if offered. The benefits far outweigh any risks. #DocsForVax 6/8
BUT it’s still early and the numbers will rise quickly. We are planning for a peak of hospital admissions around early August. Tried and tested plans for ‘surge’ ICU beds are in now place in most NHS hospitals. A few units have already opened surge areas. Anxious times. 7/8
So we definitely have another COVID wave in the UK. Patient numbers are currently manageable and we hope they will remain lower than the winter peak. People continue to die from this awful disease so please #staysafe and get vaccinated. Thanks for all you are doing. 💙💙💙 8/8
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