EXHAUSTED staff, a sharp increase in the number of hospital-acquired Covid-19 cases and “deep concerns” over capacity were just some of the fears raised by experts ahead of the last lockdown.
The issues about acute hospital preparedness ahead of the decision to lock the country down in October are revealed in an internal paper for the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet).
The joint Department of Health and HSE paper on Acute Hospitals Preparedness, presented to Nphet on October 15, warned that the situation in acute hospitals was “much more complicated” than during the first Covid-19 peak and that the sector was becoming increasingly challenged.