A FORMER medical director at Great Western Hospital said the Prime Minister and his Health Secretary needed to prepare people for the fact their loved ones will not get intensive care treatment and “will likely die”.
Sexual health specialist Dr Guy Rooney, who stepped down from the top job at GWH last year to take up an academic job in Oxford, made the comments on social media site Twitter.
Dear @MattHancock @BorisJohnson_MP need to prepare public, specifically, patients and relatives for ‘difficult’ conversations. That you or your loved one will not be going to ITU. Thus will likely die. Albeit we will minimise your physical distress and treat you with respect
— Guy Rooney🏳️🌈 (@GuyRooney1) March 23, 2020
He posted: “Dear @MattHancock @BorisJohnson_MP need to prepare public, specifically, patients and relatives for ‘difficult’ conversations. That you or your loved one will not be going to ITU [intensive care]. Thus will likely die. Albeit we will minimise your physical distress and treat you with respect.”
More than 320 people diagnosed with coronavirus have died in the UK since the outbreak began, although the true figure may be higher.
At the start of the outbreak, Boris Johnson warned about the likelihood of high death rates. “It is going to spread further and I must level with you, I must level with the British public: many more families are going to lose loved ones before their time.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article