More Covid patients in Leeds Hospitals right now than at peak of pandemic

There are more Covid patients currently in Leeds Hospitals than at the peak of the pandemic, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has announced.
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The trust said there are 263 patients currently in their beds who have tested positive for Covid - including 22 in intensive care.

Managers said the pressure on beds has become "far greater than in the first wave".

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-> 'It's the only way out': Paedophile pensioner wrote farewell note before failed suicide bid after victims reported historic sexual abuseThe trust said they are "currently working very hard to ensure they treat as many patients as possible" - while ensuring they provide a safe hospital environment.

Covid patients are being treated separately to those who test negative, the trust said.

The number of people in critical care is expected to increase over the next 48 hours in the hospitals.

Covid patient numbers have increased from 148 on Tuesday Oct 20 to 263 on Oct 27.

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The trust said this demonstrates "how quickly the virus is spreading".

-> West Yorkshire councils in Tier 3 crunch talks as city's hospital admissions riseOlder people with respiratory conditions have made up the majority of the admissions, the trust said.

The infection rate for over-59s has increased from 165 per 100,000 last Saturday to 269 per 100,000 according to the trust.

According to the PA news agency, staff at Leeds General Infirmary and St James's University Hospital have been told the growing number of admissions mean it is "looking even more likely" Leeds will be moved into Tier 3 of coronavirus restrictions.

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In a statement released on Tuesday, the trust said: "Not only is the number of COVID cases increasing but so is the rate of increase.

"Local modelling based on prevalence data indicates that it may continue to rise for the next two weeks

"We are using evidence gained during the first wave of the pandemic to increase capacity on a planned and phased basis to deal with rising numbers of COVID patients.

"Our current overall bed occupancy is far greater than in the first wave so there is very significant pressure on our inpatient capacity."

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The trust are standing down some planned operations due to current pressures in the hospital.

Some patients will have their treatment postponed, with only essential operations going ahead in most cases.

-> This is why Northern MPs have written to Boris Johnson as Leeds leaders continue with Tier 3 talksThe trust continued: "We have stopped elective inpatient orthopaedics at Chapel Allerton completely and we have begun a rolling programme of theatre closures to increase critical care capacity.

"We expect this to continue throughout the week, which means some difficult decisions as we prioritise cases of higher urgency.

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"We are prioritising urgent treatments, including cancer operations.

"Currently, we have around 1800 inpatient beds in our two main hospitals, St James’s and Leeds General Infirmary, (including critical care beds) supporting care for two groups of inpatients: acute/emergency referrals or patients admitted through A&E, including COVID-19 patients; and planned admissions for scheduled operations or procedures.

"We make hundreds of clinical decisions daily, on a case by case basis, about how beds are allocated in order to balance emergency care demand, including COVID, against our need to treat patients waiting for scheduled operations

"We are working with our partners in health and social care to discharge people who are medically fit to leave hospital."

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The trust are offering daily flu vaccination clinics to protect the health of staff.

The statement concluded: "Our message to patients and the people of Leeds is that we would encourage them to use health services when they need them.

"Advice on the right service to use is available via NHS 111 online or by telephone.

"We support the messages from the local authority asking people not to mix with others unnecessarily and reduce social contact, where possible.

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"We ask that people do this to protect NHS staff so that we can care for others."

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