The Mail on Sunday reports that heart attack victims lost their lives due to doctors still being required to wear full Covid protection equipment when resuscitating them at hospitals.
London’s leading hospital trust claims that doctors lose valuable time when treating patients in cardiac arrest. They are unable to provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), which is what they claim will save their lives.
Public Health England’s (PHE), however, advises that there should be no delay in the delivery of this lifesaving intervention. This is for Covid reasons. However, it’s still up to ‘Healthcare providers. [to]Select [whether or not]FFP3 gowns, eye protection, and gloves should all be used when chest compressions are performed by the clinicians.
Also, this newspaper understands that certain doctors may have been disciplined after administering CPR to patients in an attempt to save their lives.
London doctors at the leading London health trust claim that cardiac arrest can cause patients to go into cardiac death. They are unable to provide personal protective equipment (PPE), which is a waste of time.
One London trust doctor said that it takes about one to two minutes to apply the PPE, which can make the difference in life or death.
Marcus Fysh, Tory MP and Tory MEP for the Tory Party said last night that it was wrong to apply this restriction.
According to Mr Fysh, if everyone is vaccinated in the hospital then there’s no risk for staff to interact with patients who have Covid. This is what the stats tell us. It would therefore be wrong for a doctor to claim that they couldn’t perform CPR because they didn’t have the proper protective equipment.
Tory MP Alicia Kearns stated that she would raise the ‘lunacy of’ the policy with Health Secretary. On Sunday, she told The Mail that ‘no doctor would want to lose a client. It is hard for me to imagine that Trusts would allow doctors to become infected and potentially endanger the lives of patients.
One London Trust doctor stated that it takes about one to two minutes for them to apply the PPE. This can make the difference in life or death. Stock image
Other developments
- Sajid Javid, the Health Secretary for the UK, announced yesterday that foreign visitors who visit the UK in an attempt to fight the Omicron variant will once again need to pass pre-departure Covid screenings.
- Travellers to England, Scotland or Wales will need to undergo a pre-departure flow (PCR) test beginning at 4 a.m. on December 7.
- Nigeria will be included on Monday in the red-list of countries where arrivals must stay for at least ten days.
- The latest figures revealed that hospital admissions decreased by 0.8% over seven days to 812 and deaths declined by 3.6% to 127. There were 42,848 more positives than usual.
- The Mail on Sunday revealed that there is a lottery of postcodes for booster shots. For a booster jab, some UK citizens have to drive more than 50 miles.
Photo: Latest coronavirus vaccines, positive test results, hospital admissions, and deaths
Yesterday, Sajid Javid, Health Secretary of the UK announced that international visitors will have to undergo pre-departure Covid testing in an effort to combat the Omicron variant.
PPE rules at Trust are determined by the Resuscitation Council based upon PHE and its advice.
A Resuscitation Council statement published almost a year ago on this issue advised doctors that CPR should include full PPE. The Resuscitation Council described the approach as “pragmatic”.
The report did stress the necessity of rapid care delivery, saying that a quick response gives the greatest chance for survival.
However, the full PPE statement was issued before either the NHS or the health personnel had given a single Covid jab. Last night the Resuscitation Council confirmed its safety-first position has not changed – but said medics could work within the guidance to give patients the best chance of survival while protecting themselves from Covid.
One spokesperson said that they continue to closely monitor the situation and to regularly review their Covid-19 resuscitation guidelines to ensure that any new or emerging evidence is considered.