MORNING SERIAL
HOWEVER, as the unseasonably warm April ended and May began the growth of the virus in those areas began to wane. The latest data suggested that the areas of Swansea, Neath, Rhondda Cynon Taff (RCT) and Merthyr Tydfil had more cases per head of population. There were also a few spikes in cases in the north west of Wales though at this point it was hard to be sure if this was something more substantial or just an aberration over a few days. When questioned PHW health experts said that all the evidence suggested that the virus was moving south to north and east to west. Thankfully rural areas of Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and Powys, which were uniquely vulnerable because of an older population and less developed healthcare infrastructure were yet to be greatly affected.
Though the movements of the virus were very concerning in the areas affected there were some glimmers of hope that it was possible to come out of the other side. Doctors at the Royal Gwent Hospital reported that many of the other indicators of high coronavirus levels such as ICU capacity, deaths and hospital admittance were heading in the right direction.
This week I was lucky enough to interview Dr David Hepburn, who works at the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport. The 43-year-old was the acting clinical director for intensive care so was on the front line of the front line, in the battle against the virus in the early days of the crisis. He had become something of a household name after he spoke publicly about contracting coronavirus himself. As well as the revelation that at one point all of the patients in intensive care in his hospital were in their fifties or younger.
There is something wonderful about speaking directly to people on the frontline. Free from the press officers, PR consultants and politicians, you are able to ask real people, doing an important job, questions that readers want answered. There is no ‘we really want to thank our strategic, multi-agency partners,’ just real insight into what it is like to treat the virus that is killing us.
The insights he offered were fascinating.
Lockdown Wales by Will Hayward £9.99 www.serenbooks.com/ productdisplay/lockdown-wales ISBN 9781781726013
CONTINUES TOMORROW