More patients with COVID-19 are being treated in St Mary’s Hospital than at any other point during the pandemic, leading to non-urgent surgery being cancelled to free up beds.
Maggie Oldham, Chief Executive of the Isle of Wight NHS Trust, has warned that services are already stretched due to the winter pressures but that thousands of staff members are working tirelessly to make sure that the Trust can continue to provide safe care to Islanders.
The situation is said to be ‘very serious’ and that without urgent action our health and social care services will be put under ‘unbearable pressure’.
In response to the developing situation, St Mary’s Hospital has opened up more general and intensive care beds and has set up a second isolation unit.
Emergency and cancer surgery is continuing at thios time but non-urgent surgery has been cancelled in order to free up beds and clinicians to maintain the safety of services provided. Furthermore, some outpatient appointments will have to happen by telephone or video call with the potential for a reduction in appointments in the weeks ahead.
The Isle of Wight community is being thanked for the incredible effort put in to support the NHS during 2020 and the positive way in which Islanders have responded to the challenges of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Islanders are being asked to help the NHS now more than ever by staying at home, and thinking about hands, space, space and ventilate…
- Hands – wash your hands regularly and for at least 20 seconds
- Face – wear a face covering in indoor settings where social distancing may be difficult, and where you will come into contact with people you do not normally meet
- Space – stay 2 metres apart from people you do not live with where possible, or 1 metre with extra precautions in place (such as wearing face coverings)
- Ventilate – opening a window for 15 minutes per day helps to ventilate indoor areas and keep air circulating
If you need urgent medical help, call 111. If it is a life threateing emergency then always dial 999.
They say the darkest hours, is right before the dawn.
Let’s hope they are right and there is serious effort in getting the vaccine out to those who both want and need it first.
Why don’t the Island NHS trust back up their statement with some figures?
Because they don’t have to ?
Maybe not but it would make people more aware and encourage them to do the right thing!
Thanks to all the people who flocked to the Island over the Christmas period much appreciated!!!!! NOT !!!!!
Throughout history, the powerful found ways to identify the enslaved, often by making them walk barefoot, but also with distinctive clothing or by branding.
You don’t know the first thing about oppression. Go live in China and you will see what it is really like. In China your comment would have you and your family shipped of to an ‘education’ camp.
All the restrictions are to protect us. I am so glad we did not have people like you in the second world war. You would be inviting the Germans to invade. That is what you’re asking us to do with covid, to just roll over and give up. Back in your hole surrender monkey.
“All the restrictions are to protect us”
You are rather naive…fear can affect critical thinking.
Obviously oppression is pretty severe in china but dont forget,nasty wicked oppression always starts with some restrictive practice and transmogrifies into chinese type oppression. eg: Discussion of IMPORTANT happenings on the island PREVENTED by the suspension of comments during major holidays. The price of freedom is eternal vigilance.
Why should Island Echo staff have to work over Christmas in order to moderate the complete garbage that is posted by some contributors. The staff who are tasked with the job of reading and moderating this uneducated and ill informed rubbish deserve a holiday and a pay rise.
Well one reason I suspect might be to assist in the operation of a fully professional and informative publication. Asking staff to censor the input is just plain wrong and unfair. If someone says something unlawful then the editor can pick up the phone and complain to a lawyer or the police.
Well I have to say it looks like there’s a January sale on at the Covid test centre. The queue is bigger than fast food shops.
must be infect one infect 2 for free!
This is TRUE FACT… not speculation or number crunching…
How many beds at St Mary’s are occupied with Covid patients?
On December 19 there were four, on December 20 to December 22 there were five. This went up to 13 on December 23. On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day there were 12. On December 26 there were 16, on December 27 there were 19, and on December 28 there were 20. By December 29, the last day the data is available for, there were 23 patients. Please note there is a lag in the data so it is often backdated and updated.
Now where does it say thousands or even hundreds ??? Get real people.
i agree i have been trying since march to get answers. How did every country (almost) decide on the same reaction to this pandemic
when it is different to previous. How can we develop immunity if we are separated from from it. In previous cases only those infected were isolated. Also the restrictions being applied don’t make any sense at all there doesn’t seem to be any logical thinking by anyone involved in the decision making. Hope some agree or have more information.
Steve
Read the other Island paper thay give numbers in hospital up to 29th Dec
Positive case at hovertravel kept quiet ….FACT PEOPLE all know at every iow media…but still not been made public .total b s