Patients are afraid to come and see us, doctor warns
THE chief executive of the Welsh NHS has given encouraging signs that the nation’s hospitals have weathered the storm of the first coronavirus peak.
Dr Andrew Goodall said the health service had not been overwhelmed by the Covid-19 pandemic and was still there for people who needed emergency care.
The Welsh Government revealed the number of people attending Welsh emergency departments had fallen by up to 50% since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
Dr Goodall said emergency admissions to hospitals had fallen by a third, while there were 10% fewer people being taken to hospital by ambulance and “activity” at GP surgeries had dropped by up to 25%.
The figures came as:
■ The death toll in Wales rose by 10, bringing the total number of deaths with Covid-19 in Wales to 1,164;
■ The number of people testing positive for the virus has now reached 11,834 following an increase of 128; and
■ Two police and crime commissioners have called for fines to be increased in Wales for those breaching lockdown rules.
Dr Goodall, speaking at a press conference held in Cathays Park, Cardiff, yesterday, confirmed the number of coronavirus cases being treated by the Welsh NHS was continuing to fall.
He also said there was a “stabilisation and reduction” of new confirmed cases.
But he warned there remained “real potential” for a rise in community transmission rates that could lead to a damaging second peak as lockdown measures are eased.
And he emphasised that the NHS in Wales remains open despite concerns raised by doctors that patients are “afraid” to see their GP or visit hospital during the coronavirus crisis.
“I think we need to recognise this is going to be a cautious and progressive approach,” he said.
“Urgent and critical care continues whether there is a virus around us or not.
“We are moving to a phase where we have to balance the responsibilities of responding to the virus, alongside the responsibility to make sure people who need care and treatment can access it.
“I don’t think it is a switch we can just press; I think we are going to need to review how we roll this out.”
Earlier, a GP had told the Senedd health committee that patients did not want to be a burden on the health service and were staying away.
Dr Robert Morgan, of the Royal College of General Practitioners Wales, said doctors’ surgeries remained open during the Covid-19 pandemic but feared what would happen if there was a surge in appointments.
“I think when we speak to patients who are phoning us up daily now, they are afraid, they are afraid of coming to us,” Dr Morgan said.
“They are afraid of coming into the general practice, they are certainly afraid of going into hospital.
“There is another element, particularly in the elderly population who are contacting us, they don’t want to burden us because we are busy as a health service.”
The committee heard attendances at accident and emergency departments had fallen because of the virus.
Dr Morgan, who is a GP in Bridgend, added: “The A&E attendances are reflected in what we are seeing in terms of the patients who might be attending otherwise for either onset of chronic conditions or more significant conditions.”
The Royal College of General Practitioners at UK level and in Wales has been very active from the start in saying that general practice is open.
Dr Morgan said: “I think there is a cohort of patients who aren’t coming for their own reasons.
“There is a slight positive to all of this that patients might be managing minor illnesses with self-care without resorting to a pharmacy or a GP.
“Those behaviours might be something that people can take forward.”
Dr Morgan warned of the danger of telling patients that suddenly doctors’ surgeries were open.
He said: “Working with Government, we need to give the right messages to patients and saying ‘as from tomorrow general practice is open’ will create more harm to both the wellbeing of GPs and the structure we can currently offer, and patients.
“We will be overwhelmed and we are busy enough at the moment. I think we need to look at a progressive opening, with the same messages coming from Government as from health boards and general practices.
“And trying to take account of local variations in current infection rates and what different practices can offer at different times.”
Speaking at the daily Welsh Government briefing, Dr Goodall said that in the early stages of the pandemic, staying away from hospital did help the NHS prepare for the peak.
“We now need to look after those areas and I remain concerned that our A&E attendances, our emergency admissions and our referrals are lower than we would expect at the moment,” he said.
“We are going to have to recognise that working through this virus we are going to have to catch up on a backlog of patients that still need to be treated.”
First Minister Mark Drakeford is