‘700 patients in three weeks and 70 critical in crisis-hit hospital wards’

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Men in military uniforms being shown around the ExCeL London, which is being converted into the NHS Nightingale field hospital
Jeremy Selwyn

The London hospital at the centre of the UK coronavirus epidemic has been inundated with more than 700 patients in three weeks and has more than 70 receiving critical care, the Standard has been told.

London North West Healthcare NHS Trust last night revealed that 21 patients with Covid-19 at Northwick Park and Ealing hospitals had died between last Friday and Monday.

The trust has now reported 36 deaths from coronavirus — more than a fifth of the 156 in London to date and the highest number of any NHS trust.

The vast majority of the deaths are understood to have occurred at Northwick Park in Harrow.

People wearing masks as a precautionary measure against Covid-19 leave Northwick Park Hospital
AFP via Getty Images

One staff member at the hospital told ITV News that staff were becoming completely “overwhelmed” on wards and had started praying before shifts.

The trust has sent a memo to locum doctors appealing for help. It said: “We at Northwick Park have been hit pretty badly by the coronavirus outbreak with probably more than 700 cases which have passed through the hospital in three weeks.

“We expect to be in a terrible position within weeks, with desperately needed staff across the hospital. If you would like to help us at NWP then please let me know what you are able to offer.”

The Standard has been told that at least 70 patients are currently on ventilators.

North-West London has a high prevalence of type-2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, which places patients at greater risk from coronavirus.

A consultant at the trust raised concerns that staff may have spread the disease between patients because of inadequate personal protective equipment [PPE].

London during Coronavirus lockdown - In pictures

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The consultant said all coronavirus patients other than those on ventilators should be transferred to the Nightingale field hospital, which is due to open at the ExCeL conference centre in Docklands next week.

The consultant, who works at Ealing hospital, said: “I think central government should prioritise us for testing of healthcare staff for Covid and supply of scrubs and high-level PPE.”

The trust became the first in the UK to declare a critical incident for about 24 hours last Thursday when it ran out of critical care beds.

A trust spokesman today said that five of the 21 deaths had been at Ealing hospital. He denied there were as many as 70 patients on ventilators.

Gareth Thomas, the Labour MP for Harrow West, was due to raise concerns with Boris Johnson at Prime Minister’s Questions today.

He said: “Ministers don’t appear to have fully recognised that the pressure on Northwick Park is only going to intensify given the number of elderly people and those with diabetes locally. It needs to be prioritised now for the best personal protection equipment and for comprehensive testing to protect staff, their loved ones and to ensure the hospital doesn’t lose vital staff from the frontline.”

Many retired people of South Asian heritage in north-west London go to India and Pakistan between October and March to escape the UK winter. There are concerns some may have imported the disease from abroad.

Dr Onkar Sahota, a West London GP and chairman of the London Assembly’s health committee, told the Standard: “It is very worrying that London North West Healthcare has such high Covid-19 related deaths. It would be helpful if more patient profile and hospital specific data is released so that we can draw lessons.

“We must remember that the local population are amongst those with the highest incidence of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and health inequalities.”

London North West Healthcare said: “Our trust is seeing a high number of intensive care unit cases, and we are stepping up our support in response to this demand, having already significantly increased the number of intensive care beds at our hospitals, but we need everyone to also do their bit by staying at home and washing your hands.”

Across London, University College London Hospitals said it had 45 more critical care beds available for patients requiring ventilation.

Homerton, in Hackney, is looking to increase its capacity five-fold if it can get hold of extra ventilators. Whipps Cross, in Leytonstone, has lso expanded its capacity. London Ambulance Service said it was temporarily closing about 15 ambulance stations to make it easier to distribute medical supplies.

It appealed to former call-handlers to sign up for shifts to ease the demand on its phone banks, which have been receiving more than 8,000 calls a day.

NHS England medical director Professor Stephen Powis today said that the number of tests would be increased from about 5,000 a day to “hundreds of thousands of tests a day”.

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