September 3, 2020

looking after COVID-19 patients in hospital – how are things going and what has been learned?

The number of COVID-19 patients in hospital with severe disease is currently thankfully much lower than it was during the peak of infections in spring.  How have medics managed with battling against a new disease, and what has been learned about how best to look after the patients with most severe disease in intensive care?  There have been suggestions the death rate among hospitalised patients had decreased in recent months – do we know if that is the case and if so why that might be? 

Journalists dialled in to this background briefing to hear from four clinicians and researchers who work at the sharp end of COVID-19 and who could talk about the most recent data on COVID-19 hospitalisations and outcomes, and answer questions about how patients are doing in our ICUs. 

Speakers included: 

Prof Kathy Rowan, Director, ICNARC (Intensive Care National Audit & Research Centre) 

Prof David Harrison, Head Statistician, ICNARC (Intensive Care National Audit & Research Centre) 

Dr Charlotte Summers, Lecturer in Intensive Care Medicine, University of Cambridge 

Dr Manu Shankar-Hari, NIHR Clinician Scientist, and Reader and Consultant in Intensive Care Medicine, King’s College London