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Patient Safety Learning

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  1. Patient Safety Learning
    There are 70% more people in hospital now as when England was approaching its spring COVID-19 peak, and twice as many non-covid patients, according to official figures leaked to HSJ.
    In some regions, the contrast is even sharper. In the North East and Yorkshire, where COVID-19 hospitalisations are still mounting rapidly, there are now twice as many patients in acute hospitals than there were in early April.
    The information also shows that there are now 13% more patients than there were on 3 April in mechanical ventilation beds – which are reserved for the most seriously ill patients. These include more than double the number of non-covid patients than there were in the spring.
    The information — shared with HSJ and The Independent by NHS sources — also reveals that 1 in 10 hospital beds are now occupied by confirmed covid patients – up from about 6% two weeks ago.
    Read full story
    Source: HSJ, 3 November 2020
  2. Patient Safety Learning
    A mental health trust has been told to make ‘urgent improvements’ by regulators after a fourth inpatient death occurred with similar themes to three other patients dying within 12 months.
    The warning, issued by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to Devon Partnership Trust, was made after an unannounced inspection at the trust’s Langdon Hospital – following the death of a patient who died by suspected suicide in July.
    Last week HSJ revealed how the death was the fourth inpatient death within the last 12 months at the trust, with each incident having recurring themes.
    The latest death happened at Langdon Hospital in Dawlish, on one of the trust’s medium secure wards (Ashcombe), with the patient using a ligature point. It was a similar incident to another serious incident in May on a different ward (Holcombe) at the hospital, and it prompted the inspection from the CQC in mid-August.
    While the death remains under investigation by the trust, early details shared with the CQC reveal that the incident happened in an area of the ward which had been changed to an “isolation area” under the trust’s COVID-19 infection prevention strategy. However, this meant there were not “good lines of sight” for staff monitoring patients – according to the CQC’s inspection report.
    There were also “low staffing levels on the wards”, according to staff which spoke to the CQC. The staff also told inspectors they were “stressed, exhausted and burnt out following the demands of the pandemic”.
    According to the CQC, some staff had concerns about areas on the ward where patients had “unrestricted access to items including sports equipment that could be used as weapons for self-harm”.
    Although the ward’s ligature assessment claimed those areas were always supervised by staff, this was disputed by the staff themselves, the report said.
    Read full story
    Source: HSJ, 3 November 2020
  3. Patient Safety Learning
    An NHS hospital at the epicentre of the coronavirus second wave is facing the threat of action by the care watchdog as it struggles to keep patients safe, The Independent has learned.
    Senior NHS bosses in the northwest region have been accused of putting politics ahead of patient safety and not doing enough to help the hospital to cope with the surge in Covid patients in recent weeks.
    The Care Quality Commission (CQC) warned the Liverpool University Hospitals Trust on Friday that it could face action after an inspection carried out last week in response to fears raised with the regulator. 
    In a message to his colleagues on Friday, Liverpool University Hospitals (LUH) Trust medical director Tristan Cope warned the hospital had been overwhelmed by coronavirus and standards of care could no longer be maintained. He criticised NHS England and said the trust had been “abandoned” as coronavirus cases surged.
    He confirmed the CQC’s intention to take action against the trust but said the regulator had failed to appreciate the pressure staff in the hospital were under.
    Dr Cope, a consultant in anaesthesia and critical care, said: “LUH is now essentially overwhelmed by the demand. We cannot maintain patient flow and usual standards of care. We have put forward a proposal to further reduce elective [planned] activity, but maintaining capacity for the most urgent cases that would suffer from a two-four week delay."
    “It is a very sound plan that our divisional teams have worked up. However, NHS England are prevaricating and delaying with the usual request for more detail, more data, etc. It is clear to me that the politics is outweighing the patient safety issues of the acute crisis."
    Read full story
    Source: The Independent, 3 November 2020
  4. Patient Safety Learning
    North West Ambulance Service has declared a “major incident” over a high number of calls. 
    People were warned they could be asked to make their own way to hospital if their call was not life-threatening, while some patients faced delays. There were no signs the surge in demand was linked to coronavirus, a spokesperson for the service said. 
    “North West Ambulance Service has declared a major incident due to the high level of activity in the North West region, in particular the Greater Manchester area,” the service said on Monday evening.
    “If your call is not life-threatening, you may be asked if you can seek an alternative source of care or make your way to hospital by alternate means," the statement on Facebook said.
    The Independent understands at one point hundreds of calls were live - which triggered the major incident alert.
    Read full story
    Source: The Independent, 3 November 2020
     
  5. Patient Safety Learning
    People in Liverpool will be offered regular COVID-19 tests under the first trial of whole city testing in England.
    Everyone living or working in the city will be offered tests, whether or not they have symptoms, with follow-up tests every two weeks or so. Some will get new tests giving results within an hour which, if successful, could be rolled out to "millions" by Christmas, the government says.
    Liverpool has one of the highest rates of coronavirus deaths in England. The latest figures show the city recorded 1,754 cases in the week up to 30 October. The average area in England had 153.
    The pilot aims to limit spread of the virus by identifying as many infected people as possible, and taking action to break chains of transmission.
    It is thought around four-fifths of people who are infected with coronavirus show no symptoms.
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 3 November 2020
  6. Patient Safety Learning
    In late July 2019, Sara Ryan tweeted asking families with autistic or learning disabled children to share their experience of “sparkling” actions by health and social care professionals. She was writing a book about how professionals could make a difference in the lives of children and their families.
    "These tweets generated a visceral feeling in me, in part because of the simplicity of the actions captured. Why would you not ring someone after a particularly difficult appointment to check on them? Isn’t remembering what children like and engaging with their interests an obvious way to generate good relationships? Telling a parent their child has been a pleasure to support is commonplace, surely?"
    Sara's own son, Connor, was left to drown in an NHS hospital bath while nearby staff finished an online Tesco order. "Certain people, children and adults, in our society are consistently and routinely positioned outside of 'being human', leading to an erasure of love, care and thought by social and healthcare professionals. They become disposable."
    What has become clear to Sara is how much the treatment of people and their families remains on a failing loop, despite extensive research, legislative and policy change to make their lives better, and potentially transformative moments like the exposure of the Winterbourne View scandal. At the heart of this loop are loving families and a diverse range of allies, surrounded by a large cast of bystanders who, instead of fresh eyes, have vision clouded by ignorance and sometimes prejudice.
    "To rehumanise society, we need more people with guts and integrity who are prepared to step up and call out poor practice, and to look afresh at how we could do things so much better with a focus on love and brilliance."
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 27 October 2020
    Sara Ryan's book: Love, learning disabilities and pockets of brilliance: How practitioners can make a difference to the lives of children, families and adults
  7. Patient Safety Learning
    Concerns are growing that long NHS waiting times caused by the coronavirus crisis are exacerbating pre-existing health inequalities and creating a “two-tier” system, as more people turn to the private sector for quicker treatment.
    As leading doctors warn mass cancellations of NHS operations in England are inevitable this winter after waiting times reached the highest levels on record this summer, data shows a rise in the number of people self-funding treatment or investing in private health insurance.
    “COVID-19 has not impacted everyone equally, and there is clearly a risk that the backlog in routine hospital treatment is going to add to those inequalities if some people are able to get treatment faster because they’re able to pay,” said Tim Gardner, from the Health Foundation thinktank.
    As the NHS heads into winter and a growing second wave of the virus, experts stressed the need to help those affected by the backlog now.
    “There is a need to prioritise the most urgent cases, but simply because someone’s case isn’t urgent doesn’t mean it’s not important. It doesn’t mean that people aren’t waiting in pain and discomfort, or waiting anxiously for a diagnosis,” said Gardner.
    “We think it’s incumbent on the health service to make the best possible use of the capacity it’s got. But also it needs to make sure it’s supporting people while they’re waiting. We just can’t have people left in limbo.”
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 27 October 2020
  8. Patient Safety Learning
    Women aged 50-60 are at greatest risk of developing “long Covid”, analysis suggests. Older age and experiencing five or more symptoms within the first week of illness were also associated with a heightened risk of lasting health problems.
    The study, led by Dr Claire Steves and Prof Tim Spector at King’s College London, analysed data from 4,182 COVID Symptom Study app users who had been consistently logging their health and had tested positive for the virus.
    In general, women were twice as likely to suffer from Covid symptoms that lasted longer than a month, compared with men – but only until around the age of 60, when their risk level became more similar.
    Covid vaccine tracker: when will a cor
    Increasing age was also associated with a heightened risk of long Covid, with about 22% of people aged over 70 suffering for four weeks or more, compared with 10% of people aged between 18 and 49.
    For women in the 50-60 age bracket, these two risk factors appeared to combine: They were eight times more likely to experience lasting symptoms of Covid-19 compared with 18- to 30-year-olds. However, the greatest difference between men and women was seen among those aged between 40 and 50, where women’s risk of developing long Covid was double that of men’s.
    “This is a similar pattern to what you see in autoimmune diseases,” said Spector. “Things like rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid disease and lupus are two to three times more common in women until just before menopause, and then it becomes more similar.” His guess is that gender differences in the way the immune system responds to coronavirus may account for this difference."
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 21 September 2020
  9. Patient Safety Learning
    A major acute trust has confirmed the health service inspectorate has begun a criminal investigation into three incidents at its hospitals.
    University Hospitals Birmingham FT told HSJ the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has started a criminal investigation into incidents involving potential errors around the provision of anti-coagulant medication.
    The trust received a letter from the CQC this month informing it that the regulator has begun the investigation under regulation 22 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (regulated activities) regulations 2014. The incidents happened at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham and Good Hope Hospital — the trust’s two main sites.
    Regulation 22 says: “In order to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of service users, the registered person must take appropriate steps to ensure that, at all times, there are sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, skilled and experienced persons employed for the purposes of carrying on the regulated activity.”
    The CQC launched a prosecution into East Kent Hospitals University FT this month for failing to meet fundamental standards of care. The regulator also successfully prosecuted University Hospitals Plymouth Trust in September after it pleaded guilty to breaching the duty of candour. 
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: HSJ, 23 October 2020
  10. Patient Safety Learning
    A mental health unit where a patient was found dead has been placed into special measures over concerns about safety and cleanliness.
    Field House, in Alfreton, Derbyshire, was rated "inadequate" by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following a visit in August. A patient died "following use of a ligature" shortly after its inspection, the CQC said.
    Elysium, which runs the unit for women, said it was "swiftly" making changes.
    The inspectors' verdict comes after the unit was ordered to make improvements, in January 2019.
    Dr Kevin Cleary, the CQC's mental health lead, said: "There were issues with observation of patients, a lack of cleanliness at the service and with staffing.
    "There were insufficient nursing staff and they did not have the skills and experience to keep patients safe from avoidable harm. Bank and agency staff were not always familiar with the observation policy."
    "It was also worrying that not all staff received a COVID-19 risk assessment, infection control standards were poor, and hand sanitiser was not available in the service's apartments."
    The CQC said a follow-up inspection on Monday had showed "areas of improvement" but it would continue to monitor the service.
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 22 October 2020
       
  11. Patient Safety Learning
    Doctors from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds have been hindered in their search for senior roles because of widespread “racial discrimination” in the NHS, according to a report from the Royal College of Physicians.
    The RCP, which represents 30,000 of the UK’s hospital doctors, found that ingrained “bias” in the NHS made it much harder for BAME doctors to become a consultant compared with their white counterparts.
    “It is clear from the results of this survey that racial discrimination is still a major issue within the NHS,” said Dr Andrew Goddard, the RCP’s president. “It’s a travesty that any healthcare appointment would be based on anything other than ability.”
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 21 October 2020
  12. Patient Safety Learning
    The Health Secretary is urging the public – and especially young people – to follow the rules and protect themselves and others from COVID-19, as new data and a new film released today reveal the potentially devastating long-term impact of the virus.
    The symptoms of ‘long COVID’, including fatigue, protracted loss of taste or smell, respiratory and cardiovascular symptoms and mental health problems, are described in a new film being released today as part of the wider national Hands, Face, Space campaign. The film calls on the public to continue to wash their hands, cover their face and make space to control the spread of the virus.
    The emotive film features the stories of Jade, 22, Jade, 32, Tom, 32 and John, 48, who explain how their lives have been affected – weeks and months after being diagnosed with COVID-19. They discuss symptoms such as breathlessness when walking up the stairs, intermittent fevers and chest pain. The film aims to raise awareness of the long-term impact of COVID-19 as we learn more about the virus.
    A new study from King’s College London, using data from the COVID Symptom Study App and ZOE, shows one in 20 people with COVID-19 are likely to have symptoms for 8 weeks or more. The study suggests long COVID affects around 10% of 18 to 49 year olds who become unwell with COVID-19.
    Read full story
    Source: Gov.uk, 21 October 2020
  13. Patient Safety Learning
    Lockdown had a major impact on the UK's mental health, including increased rates of suicidal thoughts, according to new research.
    The study, led by the University of Glasgow, examined the effects of COVID-19 during the height of the pandemic. Certain groups are said to be particularly at risk, including young people and women. 
    This publication is the most detailed examination of how the UK's adult population coped during the first weeks of lockdown, when people were given strict orders to stay home.
    Researchers say public health measures, like lockdowns, are necessary to protect the general population, but warn they may have a "profound and long-lasting" effect on mental health and will extend beyond those who have been affected by the virus.
    The study, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry, looked at three blocks of time between March 31 and May 11.
    Just over 3,000 adults in the UK were surveyed and a range of mental health factors were considered, including depression, loneliness, suicide attempts and self-harm.
    The study found suicidal thoughts increased from 8% to 10% and they were highest among young adults (18-29 years), rising from 12.5% to 14%. The researchers say that, even though those are relatively small rises, they are significant because of the short period of time they happened over.
    "The majority of people did not report any suicidal thoughts, but this creeping rise over a very short period of time is a concern," says Prof Rory O'Connor, chair in health psychology at the University of Glasgow's Institute of Health and Wellbeing.
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 21 October 2020
  14. Patient Safety Learning
    A hospital in Yorkshire has said it is cancelling planned surgeries for at least two weeks as the number of coronavirus patients there hits levels not seen since May.
    Bradford Teaching Hospitals said it was being forced to stop non-urgent surgery and outpatient appointments for two weeks from Tuesday because of the numbers of severely ill COVID-19 patients.
    In statement the hospital said it had seen a spike in admissions in the last few days with 100 coronavirus patients now on the wards with 30 patients needing oxygen support – the highest number of any hospital in the northeast and Yorkshire region.
    It also said more patients were needing ventilators to help them breathe in intensive care.
    The trust is the latest to announce cancellations, joining the University Hospitals of Birmingham, Nottingham University Hospitals and Plymouth Hospitals as well as those in Liverpool and Manchester where hundreds of Covid patients are being looked after.
    Read full story
    Source: The Independent, 21 October 2020
  15. Patient Safety Learning
    UK researchers have developed a new risk prediction tool that estimates a person’s chance of hospitalisation and death from COVID-19.
    The algorithm, which was constructed using data from more than eight million people across England, uses key factors such as age, ethnicity and body mass index to help identify individuals in the UK at risk of developing severe illness.
    It’s hoped that the risk prediction tool, known as QCOVID, will be used to support public health policy throughout the rest of the pandemic, in shaping decisions over shielding, treatment or vaccine prioritisation.
    The research, published in The BMJ, was put together by a team of scientists across the UK, and has been praised for the depth and accuracy of its findings.
    “This study presents robust risk prediction models that could be used to stratify risk in populations for public health purposes in the event of a ‘second wave’ of the pandemic and support shared management of risk,” the researchers say.
    “We anticipate that the algorithms will be updated regularly as understanding of COVID-19 increases, as more data become available, as behaviour in the population changes, or in response to new policy interventions.”
    Read full story
    Source: The Independent, 21 October 2020
  16. Patient Safety Learning
    A man who was the last patient to leave Blackpool Victoria Hospital's intensive care unit after being treated for COVID-19 in July has died.
    Roehl Ribaya spent 60 days in intensive care in the summer but "never recovered" from the long-term effects of the virus. 
    The Filipino aerospace engineer's family said the virus had taken a heavy toll on the 47-year-old even after he was discharged from hospital on 14 August. He had a cardiac arrest on 13 October and was in a coma until he died two days later.
    His wife, Mrs Ricio-Ribaya, who lives in St Annes in Lancashire, said: "He was never the same. He was so breathless all the time.
    "Please follow the government's advice so we can stop this virus. We don't want any more to die."
    Read full story
    Source: BBC News, 20 October 2020
  17. Patient Safety Learning
    Parts of the South East saw “striking” levels of excess deaths occurring in people’s homes between July and October.
    Analysis of official data by HSJ shows the region, which excludes London, had almost 900 excess deaths in the 10 weeks to 2 October (around 10 per 100,000 population), which accounted for almost three-quarters of the national total in that period.
    Excess deaths means the number taking place above the seasonal average of previous years.
    Deaths in people’s homes — as opposed to in hospitals or care homes, for example — more than accounted for the total excess. Meanwhile, only 132 of the region’s deaths in this period mentioned COVID-19 on the death certificate.
    Experts have described the South East numbers as “very striking”, but said it is not immediately clear what was causing it to be such a significant outlier.
    Possible explanations for excess mortality during the pandemic have included disruptions to normal health services, as well as anxiety among patients about attending hospital or GP surgeries.
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: HSJ, 20 October 2020
  18. Patient Safety Learning
    There is growing distrust for the NHS and government in communities that are of fundamental importance to the national effort to counter covid, according to research by NHSX.
    People in so-called “hard to reach” communities are faced with stigma and racism due to the covid pandemic but have dwindling trust in the health service, the research found.
    They are worried about how their personal data will be used by the NHS and other state bodies. They are particularly concerned that their details will be passed on to the police or immigration services.
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: HSJ, 20 October 2020
  19. Patient Safety Learning
    The large number of COVID-19 patients being admitted to hospitals at the centre of the second wave will “devastate” care for people with other illnesses, a top doctor has said.
    Dr Tristan Cope said Liverpool’s acute hospitals would not be able to continue providing normal care because of the high number of people being treated for serious Covid symptoms. Unless the surge in coronavirus admissions slowed down it would “have a devastating effect on planned care, such as operations”, he said.
    Cope is the medical director of Liverpool university hospitals NHS trust, where almost all critical care beds are already full because the city’s high infection rate has placed intense pressure on the trust’s three hospitals: the Royal Liverpool, Broadgreen and Aintree.
    “Liverpool hospitals are under enormous pressure with admissions of sick Covid patients. We are used to pressure, but this is over and above that,” Cope tweeted last week.
    “We have the highest number of Covid patients in the UK, nearly as many now as at the peak of the first wave. We also have more Covid patients in ICU [intensive care units] than any other trust in the UK.”
    Cope said: “If we don’t reduce the rate of infection in the community and Covid admission rates continue to rise, it will inevitably have a massive effect on non-urgent care."
    “If we don’t get control of [the] spread of the virus in the community and admissions continue at the current rate, our hospitals will not be able to cope. This will have a devastating effect on planned care, such as operations.”
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 15 October 2020
  20. Patient Safety Learning
    A mother of a young boy with Down's syndrome is helping to teach people about appropriate language, after being hurt by words people often used.
    Becca, from Cornwall, uses flashcards to make sure people are aware to say things like saying someone "has Down's syndrome", rather than "suffers with Down's syndrome".
    The campaign is being rolled out in hospitals for midwives and other healthcare workers to use, with many in the profession talking about it on social media.
    A children's clothing company has offered to run it, with her son Arthur as the model, and she has been asked to translate it into other languages.
    Source: BBC News, 15 October 2020
  21. Patient Safety Learning
    The offices of the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the Quality of Health Care and Patient Safety will be located in Athens, Health Minister Vassilis Kikilias and the WHO Regional Director for Europe, Hans Kluge, announced on Friday after their meeting in Copenhagen.
    "The choice of Greece is a recognition of the work by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Greek Ministry of Health and the Greek government in managing the pandemic and implementing public health policies, such as the successful implementation of the anti-smoking law, and promoting important reforms, such as passing the law for the establishment of the National Organisation for Quality Assurance in Health," the health ministry said in a statement.
    "Greece has recently led important developments in the field of health, such as legislation banning smoking in public places, the launch of the National Anti-Smoking Action Plan and reforms in the field of primary health care."
    "All the above, in combination with the excellence of the Greek health institutions and the leading researchers in the field of health and wellness, indicate a strong leadership within the European Region and beyond. In addition, they create an ideal framework for the creation of a much-needed centre of excellence in the field of quality healthcare and patient safety."
    Read full story
    Source: The National Herald, 16 October 2020
  22. Patient Safety Learning
    As hospitalisations and intensive care admissions surge around the country, new figures indicate coronavirus patients in critical care have a better survival rate now than when the pandemic first began.
    The latest report from The Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre (ICNARC) into critical care for England, Wales and Northern Ireland looks at patients admitted to intensive care up until 31 August and those admitted from 1 September.
    The data shows that on average, 39% of critical care coronavirus patients died up until the end of August while less than 12% have died since September.
    The proportion of patients who died after being admitted to critical care fell by almost a quarter from the peak and as much as half in hospitals overall.
    However, the Dean of the Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine, Dr Alison Pittard, told the BBC that the difference may be attributed to an insufficient amount of time having passed which impedes an accurate and longterm patient assessment, as some remain in hospital.
    Meanwhile, scientific advisors continue to warn that the next few weeks are critical for regulating hospital admissions.
    Read full story
    Source: The Independent, 18 October 2020
  23. Patient Safety Learning
    A pharmacist-led, new digital intervention that improves patient safety when prescribing medication in general practice reduced rates of hazardous prescribing by more than 40%, 12 months after it had been introduced to 43 GP practices in Salford, finds a new study. Due to its success, plans are underway to roll it out across Greater Manchester.
    Prescribing and medication are one of the biggest causes of patient safety incidents and the third WHO Global Patient Safety Challenge is focussed on Medication without Harm. The SMASH intervention addresses this. It was developed by researchers at the National Institute for Health Research Greater Manchester Patient Safety Translational Research Centre (NIHR GM PSTRC), which is a partnership between The University of Manchester and Salford Royal hospital in collaboration with The University of Nottingham.
    Pharmacists working in general practice use the SMASH dashboard to identify patients who are exposed to potentially hazardous prescribing. For example, patients with a history of internal bleeding may be prescribed medications such as aspirin which could increase the risk of further internal bleeds without prescribing other treatments to protect them. SMASH identifies this and warns healthcare professionals about it, who can then decide on a possible course of action.
    The intervention is unique due to its ability to provide near real time feedback to prescribers as it updates every evening.
    Professor Darren Ashcroft, Research Lead for the Medication Safety theme at the GM PSTRC, said: "We worked with the Safety Informatics theme at the GM PSTRC to develop then test SMASH. It is designed to improve patient safety in general practice by reducing potential problems made when prescribing medication and inadequate blood-test monitoring. It brings together people and data to reduce these common medication safety problems that all too often can cause serious harm."
    Read full story
    Source: EurekAlert, 14 October 2020
  24. Patient Safety Learning
    Inpatient mortality among people receiving non-invasive ventilation (NIV) has decreased for the first time since 2010, falling from 34% in 2013 to 26% in 2019, figures released by the British Thoracic Society show.
    The annual National Adult Non-Invasive Ventilation audit, which began in 2010, reported “substantial improvements in processes of care and patient outcomes” in 2019 when compared with previous years.
    “Some improvement in overall mortality may be attributed to improved patient selection,” it said. “Mortality outcomes were lower for each diagnostic category, and most notably for patients with COPD [chronic obstructive pulmonary disease] and obesity-related respiratory failure.”
    Read full story (paywalled)
    Source: BMJ, 10 July 2020
  25. Patient Safety Learning
    Greater Manchester is set to run out of beds to treat people left seriously ill by COVID-19, and some of the region’s 12 hospitals are already full, a leaked NHS document has revealed.
    It showed that by last Friday the resurgence of the disease had left hospitals in Salford, Stockport and Bolton at maximum capacity, with no spare beds to help with the growing influx. The picture it paints ratchets up the pressure on ministers to reach a deal with local leaders over the region’s planned move to the top level of coronavirus restrictions.
    It suggested that Greater Manchester’s hospitals are quickly heading towards being overwhelmed by the sheer number of people with Covid needing emergency care to save their lives, in the same way that those in Liverpool have become in recent weeks. By Friday 211 of the 257 critical care beds in Greater Manchester – 82% of the total supply – were already being used for either those with Covid or people who were critically ill because of another illness.
    Read full story
    Source: The Guardian, 18 October 2020
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