Takeaways from tonight’s wine-based Zoom chat with medic friends:
1 Bristol has (so far) one of the lowest Covid rates in the UK. It also has one of the worst public transport systems of all our major cities.

2 A&E consultant reports far lower levels of non-Covid presentations than usual (fewer car crashes, drunken brawls etc) but this week has seen a huge spike in mental health episodes.

3 GP says surgery has fewer patients wanting appointments but each takes 3 times longer than usual. Also that the nursing home she looks after has had no Covid cases. They voluntarily locked down much earlier than most, much to the chagrin of the residents’ families.

4 Anaesthetist says toughest thing is PPE prevents all the usual humane contact to allay the fears of anxious patients, and the sheer volume of plastic PPE waste is worrying. They’re working towards re-useable PPE they can wash themselves because all evidence suggests

that they’ll be needing it for a very, very long time to come.

5 Furmint and sausage rolls are a fucking great match.