Politics

Two new emergency coronavirus hospitals as 33,000 beds created for patients


NHS England Chief Executive Simon Stevens has announced that 33,000 hospital beds are available to treat further coronavirus patients.

He also unveiled plans to build new ‘Nightingale’ hospitals to help deal with the outbreak during today’s daily Downing Street press conference.

Sir Simon also said NHS staff will start being tested for coronavirus from next week, including critical care nurses, intensive care staff, ambulance workers and GPs.

The new hospital-building project starts with the Nightingale Hospital at the ExCel centre in east London.

A further two facilities are planned at the Birmingham National Exhibition Centre and the Manchester Central Convention Centre.

The NHS intends to build additional hospitals after these sites, Sir Simon said.

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Michael Gove has delivered the Government’s daily coronavirus press conference today

He added: “Today because this is a problem of course not just confined to London but across the whole country, I have given the go-ahead to the building of two further of these NHS Nightingale hospitals beginning at the Birmingham National Exhibition Centre and the Manchester Central Convention Centre, with further such hospitals to follow.”

A temporary hospital is already being constructed at London’s ExCel centre and is due to receive patients next week.

Sir Simon acknowledged that the NHS needs more staff and hospital beds in today’s press conference.

The Nightingale Hospital at the ExCel centre in London

Prince Charles was seen on video applauding NHS workers in the Clap for our Carers movement

Speaking about the new testing for NHS workers from next week, the NHS boss said: “I can say that today we will be rolling out staff testing across the NHS, starting next week with the critical care nurses, other staff in intensive care, emergency departments, ambulance services, GPs.

“As testing volumes continue to increase, we want to widen that to essential public service workers, as well as our social care workers, and continue with patient testing that is so vital.”

When questioned about the impact of cuts on the health service’s response to the outbreak, the health chief defended his record on bed reductions and nurse numbers.

Covid-19 may be far more common amongst the UK population than previously thought
London’s streets are largely empty as a result of the lockdown

He said: “The NHS does need more staff and it does need more hospital beds, we’ve been saying that for some time and that’s what’s going to be happening.

“But the reality is … over the last several weeks we’ve freed up the equivalent of 50 hospitals across England ready and waiting for coronavirus patients.

“Under normal circumstances you would not keep 50 hospitals fully staffed with nurses and doctors not actually looking after patients.”

He also thanked the public for the Clap For Carers effort, saying it would have meant an “enormous amount” to NHS staff to know the “whole country is behind them”.

He said in the last two weeks 18,000 doctors and nurses have returned to practise registers after “answering the calls to arms”.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson was diagnosed with coronavirus today

“It was therefore very gratifying for our staff across the NHS to see this remarkable outpouring in the Clap For Carers last night,” he said.

“For many nurses coming home from a day at hospital or for other staff returning to start again for the night shift it would have meant an enormous amount to know that the whole country is behind them.”

He also said that across England there are now 33,000 hospital beds available to treat coronavirus patients.

Currently, there are 6,200 confirmed Covid-19 patients being treated in English hospitals and he said that number is “only bound to rise in the coming days”.

It comes after Boris Johnson today tested positive for coronavirus, with Health Secretary Matt Hancock also subsequently being diagnosed.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has also contracted the disease

Chief Medical Officer for England Professor Chris Whitty also announced he had the disease this afternoon.

The revelations come amid the biggest day-to-day increase in the number of coronavirus deaths in the UK.

The UK death toll rose to 759 today, an increase of 181 in 24 hours.

In the last day, 168 people have died from the disease in England, the NHS said.

These patients were aged between 29 and 98 years old and all but four – aged between 82 and 91 – had underlying health conditions.

Some 14,579 people in the UK have been diagnosed with the virus, following 113,777 tests.

The disease has also had a devastating impact on the world economy.

Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty has been diagnosed with the virus

The managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said it is clear that the world has entered a recession as bad or worse than the global financial crisis.

The IMF expects the recession for 2020 to be quite deep, said managing director Kristalina Georgieva.

It is important to note that she is referring to the updated IMF forecasts when she says “it’s clear the world has entered a recession as bad or worse than 2009.”

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Coronavirus outbreak

She said: “We have reassessed the prospects for growth in 2020 and 2021. It is now clear that we have entered a recession as bad or worse than in 2009.

“We do project recovery in 2021. In fact, there may be a sizeable rebound.

“But only if we succeed with containing the virus everywhere and prevent liquidity problems becoming a solvency issue.”





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