Medics in areas worst affected by the surging number of coronavirus cases are just days away from having to make ‘horrendous choices’ over who they can treat and who is left to die, a consultant warned last night.
The situation in hospitals reaching breaking point with record Covid admissions continued to deteriorate yesterday, with ambulances queuing and many intensive care units operating well over their capacity.
It emerged certain London ICUs have asked major hospitals in Yorkshire, more than 150 miles to the north, if they will agree to take some patients.
With beds, staff and equipment all running low, consultant anaesthetist Dr Claudia Paoloni warned the situation was just days away from reaching the point where care would be rationed.
Dr Paoloni, president of the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association, told The Guardian: ‘Our NHS just doesn’t have the beds to cope. Some areas will be overwhelmed in days. If ventilation capacity is exceeded, horrendous choices will have to be made over those who live and die.’
She added that other life determining choices will also have to be made, including which patients to admit to intensive care and how long to continue treatments on patients who appear to be making no progress, if for example a patient with better chances of survival needs the haemodialysis machine they are using.
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Source: Daily Mail
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