Just two ICU Covid patients in Wales
THERE are now just two patients with Covid-19 in intensive care in Wales, latest figures reveal. In a further encouraging sign that the nation is getting on top of the pandemic, Cardiff and Vale University Health Board and Swansea Bay University Health Board had a solitary patient each needing invasive ventilated beds on April 29, while all other health boards in Wales recorded zero patients requiring such care, Welsh Government statistics revealed yesterday.
At the height of the first wave of the pandemic in April 2020, there were as many as 164 coronavirus patients needing the highest level of breathing support in intensive care, piling unsustainable pressure on the NHS in Wales.
Nicky Hughes, of Royal College of Nursing Wales, said: “It’s really good news... it’s an amazing sight to see how much the NHS has rallied, even though everyone is exhausted and still coming to terms with what they have experienced.”
AT THE height of the first wave of the pandemic in April, 2020, there were as many as 164 coronavirus patients needing the highest level of breathing support in intensive care.
Such huge volumes of desperately ill patients threatened to overwhelm hospitals across Wales, with NHS staff facing little choice but to direct some critical cases to neighbouring health boards.
But fast forward 12 months and thanks to the fast-paced vaccine rollout – and months of arduous lockdown restrictions – that number has been reduced to just two, according to latest Welsh Government statistics.
Cardiff and Vale University Health Board and Swansea Bay University Health Board had a solitary patient each needing invasive ventilated beds on April 29, while all other health boards recorded zero patients requiring such care.
However, intensive care units across Wales are still incredibly busy and are having to treat significant numbers of patients without Covid19. Many people are now needing a spell in critical care following major operations which were delayed due to the pandemic.
Current data shows that 168 beds were taken up by non-Covid cases on April 29, which still exceeds the typical NHS Wales critical care capacity of 152.
In response to the latest figures, Nicky Hughes, the Royal College of Nursing Wales Associate Director of Nursing, said: “It’s really good news that we haven’t got the patients needing that type of invasive treatment anymore, and it’s reflective of the falling infection rate and transmission in communities.
“This reduction is down to the lockdowns we’ve all had to endure - and done so stoically and with vigilance but also shows the success of the vaccination programme.
“It’s an amazing sight to see how much the NHS has rallied even though everyone is exhausted and still coming to terms with what they have experienced.”
Nicky, who works as a bank nurse, said last April was a particularly distressing time for those in the nursing profession, with experienced ITU staff working alongside those who had given up their normal roles to help out in such pressurised settings.
“We’ve heard our nurses telling us about the distress they’ve faced, having to care for dying patients without their loved ones around them when that would normally be a core part of the care they provide,” she added.
“Then, when January arrived we saw a lot of steps forward when it came to treatment of Covid patients and staff were better prepared. But that’s not really to detract from how difficult it has been for everyone working in those areas. We have seen nurses who have sacrificed their home and family life to be there for our patients and that shows the value of the profession and the complex work they do.”
Despite their tireless efforts during the pandemic, she added that NHS workers were now having to step up again as routine work resumes across Wales.
She added: “If we do see any further variants coming in, or we see the restrictions generating a bit of an upsurge in coronavirus, health boards will be watching that very, very closely so they can mobilise and use the capacity they have got. We are in a very delicate balance at the moment.”
Meanwhile, in the last seven days for which figures are available, an average of just 15 people a day were admitted to Welsh hospitals with confirmed or suspected Covid-19.
The numbers have not been this low since they were first compiled at the start of the pandemic in March,
2020. At the very height of the winter peak it was not uncommon for 10 times that many people to be coming through the hospital doors over a 24-hour period.
Similarly, the number of general and acute beds being occupied by Covid-19 patients has come down substantially.
Latest data shows there are now only 43 people with “confirmed” coronavirus in hospitals across Wales. To put this into context, NHS staff were dealing with upwards of 1,600 confirmed patients during late December and January and were struggling to cope with the excessive workload.
There are also 150 patients “recovering” from the virus, while there are a further 59 “suspected”, bringing the current total of confirmed, recovering or suspected coronavirus patients in hospital to 252 – representing 3% of all hospitalisations.
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board has the most such patients in general and acute beds with 69, followed by Cwm Taf Morgannwg UHB with 61, Cardiff and Vale UHB with 56, Aneurin Bevan with 34, Swansea Bay with 19, and Hywel Dda with 13.
Dr Olwen Williams, a consultant physician at Besti Cadwaladr University Health Board and vice-president of the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) said of the drop in patients in invasive ventilated beds: “This is a good piece of positive news as the rules relax further in Wales this week. It doesn’t mean that coronavirus has gone away though.
“We need to continue to be careful and follow the hands, face, space rules, and spend as much time outside as possible Above all, NHS staff must be allowed time to rest and recharge before tackling the backlog. If we can’t care for ourselves, how can we care properly for others?
“Many of us in the health service have worked almost non-stop for 14 months, and we are looking forward, just like everyone else, to seeing more of our family and friends over the summer months.
“The NHS and the incoming Welsh Government must prioritise the health and wellbeing of its staff to allow us to recover and prepare for next winter in case there is a third wave.”