Speaking to your doctor

In order to limit the number of people moving in and out of the COVID ward and thus reducing the risk of virus transmission to other vulnerable patients and staff, your doctor may not be physically present. You may be in hospital with issues other than COVID, and have more than one team of doctors looking after you.

At the time of writing, each COVID patient is discussed daily in a telehealth-based ward round with the Consultant and registrar covering the ward. Your nurses will report any issues with these doctors and any medical issues are ‘flagged’ at this point for us to review remotely (usually via telephone as a starting point).

These can be COVID-related (e.g. worsening cough, fever) or general medical issues (e.g. high blood sugar levels in a patient with diabetes).

However, if you are acutely unwell, the nurses will urgently alert the doctors covering the ward and they may attend for a face-to-face review once they have appropriate PPE on. This can include, but is not limited to: shortness of breath, chest pain, altered level of consciousness, low blood pressure…

It is important if you are feeling more unwell that you inform the nursing staff present on the ward so they can do a basic assessment and speak with your doctor.

If you would ever like to speak to a doctor about your COVID treatment, you can mention it to the nursing staff who can arrange for the COVID doctor to speak to you.