London Hospitals Declare Major Incidents As COVID-19 Infections Rise

• Doctors in England have warned that National Health Service staff are at a “breaking point” and hospitals are running out of oxygen.
• It comes amid an alarming new surge in COVID-19 patients across the country, and scientists warn that a new, possibly more infectious variant of coronavirus is responsible for a sharp rise in infections.
• There are now more COVID-19 patients in the hospital than at any other point in the pandemic, and the London Ambulance Service said December 26 was one of the “busiest” days.
• A South London hospital was forced to declare an “internal incident” over the weekend due to pressure on services.
• Some facilities in the city have also been forced to divert ambulances amid concerns about oxygen supply, according to The Independent.
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Doctors in England are warning that National Health Service staff are at a “breaking point” and that hospitals are running out of oxygen amid an alarming new surge in COVID-19 patients across the country.

Official NHS figures show there are now more COVID-19 patients in the hospital than at the previous peak in the spring, while the London Ambulance Service said Boxing Day was one of its “busiest” days.

UK Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said in a December 19 statement that a new, more infectious variant of the coronavirus could be partly responsible for a recent spike in infections.

The number of daily cases recorded in the UK rose to its highest level on Monday with 40,000 new confirmed cases, according to government figures.

The increased household mix over Christmas has also raised concerns that the situation could worsen in January.

According to The Independent, Queen Elizabeth Hospital in London, where the new variant of the coronavirus is particularly prevalent, was forced to divert ambulances to other hospitals amid concerns about its oxygen supply.

Patients with severe cases of COVID-19 are often placed on ventilation machines that require oxygen.

The hospital is part of the Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, which in a statement said it had declared an internal incident on Sunday as a “precautionary measure.”

Ambulances were asked to take emergency patients to nearby hospitals because the number of COVID-19 patients meant there was more demand for oxygen lines than supply, according to The Independent.

Several other hospitals in London were also forced to report major incidents last week, the outlet added.

‘Breaking point’

Dr Samantha Batt-Rawden, Senior Intensive Care Registrar and President of the UK Physicians Association, an association representing more than 46,000 NHS physicians said this week that NHS staff were at a “breaking point”, partly because many had fallen ill since the new strain of the coronavirus emerged.

“Dr. Samantha Batt-Rawden (@sbattrawden) December 28, 2020

“We are incredibly thin,” Batt-Rawden tweeted. “NHS staff have not been prioritized for the vaccine and they are getting sick en masse from the new strain.”

Batt-Rawden also shared a now-deleted post from an NHS board in Wales asking medical students to provide support for patients with COVID-19, a treatment whereby patients stand up for an extended period.

Figures released by NHS England show that there were 20,426 confirmed COVID-19 patients in English hospitals as of 8am on December 28. That number was higher for the first time than the previous peak in April of 18,974.

Those numbers are likely to increase dramatically as the new variant spreads across England.

Professor Andrew Hayward, an infectious disease expert who advises the UK government on COVID-19, said the government needed to introduce more restrictions on social mixing to avoid a “catastrophe” in the new year.

“We are going to need early and decisive national action to avoid a catastrophe in January and February,” Hayward told the BBC on Tuesday. The comments were cited by Reuters.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, a separate group that advises the government on its response to the coronavirus, has told Prime Minister Boris Johnson to close schools in January to avoid an even more severe spike in coronavirus infections in January, according to Politician.

Michael Gove, the Cabinet Office minister, said Monday he was “confident” there would be a “staggered” return to secondary schools as planned.

“We are confident that we will be able to get the schools back in good shape. Our plan and schedule are there, and we are working with teachers to deliver,” he told BBC Radio 4’s “Today” program.