Peak of critically ill COVID patients arrives in 2-3 weeks
Temporary beds are added in the emergency department of Beijing Chaoyang Hospital on December 27.
An influx of critically ill COVID-19 patients may arrive in two to three weeks as the number of infections has reached a peak in multiple places across China, said a medical expert.
ICU wards across the country have been full of patients in recent days as many severely ill patients take a very long time to recover, stretching medical resources thin and posing a great challenge to medical staffers, said Qiu Yunqing, deputy director of the First Affiliated Hospital of the Zhejiang University School of Medicine, in a conversation with Health Times on Thursday.
Hospitals should increase the volume of ICU beds quickly and urgently train more staffers to attend to ICU patients. Local governments and hospitals should provide more support and care to medical practitioners, said Qiu.
Vulnerable groups such as seniors and those with pre-existing conditions are advised to have CT scans and anti-viral treatment at the onset of their infection, Qiu added.
