Three nurses that had to wear bin bags on their shifts at Northwick Park Hospital due to a shortage in personal protective equipment have tested positive for coronavirus.
The nurses had previously shared a photo showing themselves wearing the bags on as they asked for proper PPE equipment.
A few weeks ago, the nurses wearing bags on their head at Northwick Park hospital had been shared on social media.
‘We are so disheartened with what we face day by day, night by night,’ said the nurses in the caption.
‘Improvising PPEs (Personal Protective Equipment) to at least try to protect us from our infectious patients, buying our own wellington boots that is said to be re-imbursed. This is how our prime minister says that we are stockpiling PPEs!
‘We have to stay brave for our colleagues who are off sick, families and our patients. It just made us cry inside but we show brave and smiling faces to everyone.’
One ward at the hospital now has a large number of medical staff that have tested positive for coronavirus, the Daily Telegraph reports.
The nurses spoke to the publication and said they had to ‘use their initiative’ by wearing the bin liners, as they had ‘no other choice’ due to the shortage of PPE available at the hospital.
One nurse said: “There are so many younger people here on ventilation – many with asthma, or diabetes. They can’t stop coughing, they just cough and cough and cough and they can’t help it – but there’s little we can do apart from try to help them breathe.
“Sometimes the body just gives up, and they die. We can’t save them. The worst part is that we can’t allow their relatives in to say goodbye.”
A spokesperson for London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust, confirmed that a ‘number’ of staff had tested positive for Covid-19.
They also told the Telegraph: ‘We are providing full support to those of our staff members who become unwell, and wish them a swift recovery.’
It has been reported that over 50 per cent of staff on one ward including a ward manager and matron were found to have contracted the virus.
(Image Credit: Google)
