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Older doctors fear that increasing noncompliance with the blockade carries the risk of triggering a second wave of Covid-19 infections.
They also believe that Boris Johnson’s decision to begin urging people to “stay alert” rather than “stay home” will confuse the public and make it even more difficult to enforce movement restrictions designed to save lives and protect the NHS. .
Intensive care doctors warn that “irresponsible” behavior, such as people who ignore the rules of staying two meters away during Friday’s VE Day anniversary celebrations, could lead to the number of people needing to be transferred. to the hospital with the disease again increase.
Dr. David Hepburn, an intensive consultant in Wales, tweeted: “I just saw the conga lines / street parties on the news. The nation has lost its mind. We are preparing for the second wave.
“I am so, so tired and so angry. We have had a few days off and I was starting to feel hopeful. I can’t believe I was so naive.”
Dr. Ami Jones, another ICU specialist, tweeted a link to a table showing that the UK has the highest death rate in the world from Covid-19, even higher than the United States.
She said: “Showing our supremacy in world statistics while irresponsibly rejecting the blockade to celebrate VE Day in the worst way. I’m glad I had a couple of weeks out of ITU to recover, as the next wave will make this horrible statistic even worse. Things are about to get down to business. “
Challenged by the accuracy of the graph, Jones replied: “I think it is useful to demonstrate that we are not close to overcoming this, yet people behave as if all the risk is gone and life can return to normal.” It couldn’t be further than normal. “
Dr. Mark Forrest, an intensive care physician in the north west of England, said he was “seriously concerned” that ignoring the blockade would increase pressure on units like his.
He tweeted: “Our ICU already has more Covid cases than 2 weeks ago as more people come out. Ignoring the blockade has us seriously concerned for the next few weeks. ”
Their concern follows the media coverage of people gathered in large groups on Friday, and in one case making a massive conga, to celebrate the 75th anniversary of VE Day and also of large numbers of people sunbathing and having a picnic on Saturday at London Fields in Hackney, east London.
Police officers also express intense frustration at public behavior. The scenes at London Fields prompted police to tweet: “We are fighting a losing battle on patrol today. Literally hundreds of people sitting around eating pizza, beer, wine.”
The Metropolitan Police Federation, which represents base officers in the capital, has also criticized the government’s “lackluster” response to the pandemic. Stricter measures were needed from the start, he said.
And a high-ranking police officer who survived a period of intensive care with Covid-19 criticized the “increasingly brazen” attitude of the public towards observing the blockade.
Police Chief Phil Dolby of the West Midlands Police tweeted: “A month ago today, in a fan and in a coma, I started breathing on my own! I am very upset by the increasingly blatant way in which people deal with blocking. With the lack of answers about immunity, my family and I will continue to protect ourselves. I can’t go through that again. # COVID-19 “.
Medical experts are also expressing deep concern over the government’s change in strategy by switching to “stay alert” rather than “stay home” as a key message, which the prime minister will formally present in his televised address at 7 p.m. this afternoon on how to ease the block
“We haven’t had a formal announcement of this yet, but if it’s actually ‘being alert’, it’s hard to be clear on what that means, rather than ‘staying indoors,'” said Professor Simon Wessely, the professor of psychiatry at King’s College London (KCL) and director of the Health Protection Research Unit in Emergency Preparedness and Response.
“Research in similar situations shows that what the public wants most is a specific guide on what to do and what not to do. I’m not sure how this responds to that, ”added Wessely, former president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
Professor Til Wykes, vice dean of the KCL Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, said that “staying alert” would lead to riskier behavior. “The only thing that helps the population is clear, concise and precise messages. This is just concise, “he said.
“The previous message to ‘stay home’ was at least clear. What does’ stay alert” mean? It will just be confusing, open to misinterpretation, and risky behavior is likely to increase. That means taking risks that will affect everyone and infections will increase. “
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