Scotland’s preparedness in numbers (thread):

An NHS overwhelmed by COVID-19 could be, as seen in Italy, the difference between life & death. It could be the difference between everyone getting treatment & there sadly not being enough to go around for all patients... https://twitter.com/PeterAdamSmith/status/1238229208943468544

As we reported, Scotland has 190 Level 3 ICU beds able to provide ventilatory support. These could be vital life-savers for severe cases.

Occupancy levels in ICUs & combined units is currently about 71%.

Around 60 ICU beds with ventilators are currently free in all of Scotland.

NHS Boards plan to double ICU level 3 beds. ScotGov says it’s supporting this, but it will take time.

Scottish Health Sec says, “As we work to double our intensive care capacity, some lead time is needed to repurpose facilities & ensure staff receive the training they need.”

The latest data shows there are 1411.9 WTE nurses working in ICU or combined units across Scotland.

There are 1,034.9 WTE nurses working in HDU units.

Latest statistics show there are around 296 High Dependancy Units (HDU) beds in all of Scotland.

Occupancy levels in HDUs are about 73%.

There are currently about 80 HDU beds free in all of Scotland.

Scotland currently has more than 13,000 staffed acute beds. As of 2017/18 there were 13,426 hospital beds across the country.

That’s 9,394 medical beds & 4,033 surgical beds.

ScotGov says some surgery will be cancelled in coming weeks to free up more beds & medical resources.

Scottish Health Sec says, “We need to free up capacity in our hospital settings and increase where we can the capacity there and in the community. So over the next 2 to 3 weeks we will scale down non urgent care so non urgent procedures are postponed.”

I asked Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer about the plans for dealing with a sudden spike in Coronavirus patients. Here’s what she told us on @itvnews.

A Scottish Gov spokesperson said, “The NHS in Scotland stands ready to deal with the Coronavirus. We have the right staffing, resources and equipment in place – and this includes oxygen equipment.”

For context, here’s my colleague @jamesmatesitv account of how ventilators and capacity, as well as other factors such as age, played a role in Italy being overwhelmed so quickly. Please read this. https://www.itv.com/news/2020-03-11/italy-doctors-coronavirus-covid-19-quarantine-milan-health/