50% of patients in Bucks hospitals have coronavirus
A Doctor has shared a plea for us to follow lockdown rules
Hospital car parks are empty in Buckinghamshire - because coronavirus patients are just coming in in ambulances.
That's the message from one of the lead doctors at Buckinghamshire's hospitals, as we hear 50% of patients are coronavirus patients at the moment.
The Trust have shared a video from Doctor Mitra Shahidi on Twitter:
In the clip, she says:
"Everyone is reaching the ends of their reserve and to hear that people think that this is a hoax is so demoralising.
"We really don't need that.
"We are struggling with staff numbers because our staff themselves are going down with covid."
Dr. Shahidi adds that if people are seeing empty hospital car parks, it's because they have had to cancel routine operations and outpatient appointments.
"It's desperately sad watching these people fighting for every breath, longing to see their relatives, not sure if they ever will see them again."
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Doctor Shahidi continues:
"It's a horrible illness.
"Many people don't suffer major problems, but the people who end up in hospital are very, very ill.
"People need to follow the lockdown rules.
"Not bend them, follow them to the tee."
More deaths reported this week
At Bucks Healthcare sites, there have been 26 deaths in the past week, up from 18 the previous week.
That brings the total to 225 as of 5pm on Wednesday.
The victims were among 7,190 deaths recorded across the South East.
Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death.
This means some of the deaths that were first recorded in the latest period may actually have taken place days earlier.
NHS England guidance states:
"Confirmation of Covid-19 diagnosis, death notification and reporting in central figures can take up to several days and the hospitals providing the data are under significant operational pressure."
Only deaths that occur in hospitals where the patient has tested positive for Covid-19 are recorded, with deaths in the community excluded, such as those in care homes.