Addenbrooke’s urges patients not to bring large groups of relatives into emergency department
A clinician at Addenbrooke’s has urged patients not to bring large groups of relatives or friends into the emergency department to help the hospital maintain social distancing.
Urgent care programme lead David Monk issued the appeal because the number of patients coming into the department was now back up to pre-Covid levels. It means that in any one day the A&E team treat up to 300 people.
Some patients were being accompanied by up to four relatives, leaving busy staff with the awkward task of asking them to leave. The hospital has put a number of initiatives in place to make the department safe and efficient, including a triage system which is able to direct some patients to the adjacent Urgent Treatment Centre or redirected to 111.
Mr Monk said: “It is extremely important that anyone who needs emergency treatment comes to the emergency department, and feels safe doing so.
“However, we have over the last week, noticed an increasing number of relatives coming to ED with patients, many stating they are carers and when we look into it further they are not.
“We cannot support this and maintain social distancing. This Friday (August 14) we had to ask a number to leave to be able to let other patients into the department and maintain social distancing.
“We simply want patients to be aware of this, and help us help them. Covid-19 remains a real concern for us and our patients, many of whom are extremely vulnerable. The exceptions to no visitors to the ED are one parent accompanying a child or a full-time carer.”
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