The harrowing details of the extent the coronavirus pandemic had on our NHS is set to be revealed today as a new report is released.
The Covid-19 Public Inquiry is set to give its verdict on how our country’s healthcare system handled the global pandemic and the impact the virus had on both patients and staff. During the inquiry, health leaders broke down as they gave powerful testimony, including one senior medic who was in tears as he described scenes “from hell” on intensive care wards.
Professor Kevin Fong, former national clinical adviser in emergency preparedness, resilience and response at NHS England, described the rate of deaths on intensive care units as “truly astounding”, saying that one hospital he visited appeared close to collapse. Over the course of two-and-a-half years, the biggest public inquiry in British history has heard harrowing testimony from various witnesses.
Previous modules found that Boris Johnson’s government cost thousands of lives by acting too late. Baroness Hallett concluded that the Partygate Prime Minister oversaw a “toxic culture” as bereaved families slammed his cabinet’s “catastrophic mishandling” of the pandemic.
Former health secretary Matt Hancock gave evidence at the inquiry, where he shared that England’s hospitals were just “hours” away from running out of some personal protective equipment (PPE) during the early months of the pandemic. He also said he “reluctantly” approved the decision to pause non-urgent planned care during the pandemic.
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Report released amid plans to strengthen visiting rights
Today’s report comes as the Government has announced plans intended to give people stronger rights when it comes to visiting loved ones in hospitals and care homes. Concerns over visitation rights were raised after people were stopped from seeing their loved ones during the pandemic in a bid to try and stop the spread of coronavirus, particularly to vulnerable people in hospitals and care homes.
The former Conservative government initially proposed the law changes in 2023. But now, Sir Keir Starmer’s Government has said it will “distribute comprehensive guidance and resources to make visitation rights clear.” The Department for Health and Social Care said ministers are “exploring bringing forward proposals for legislating visiting rights as part of wider reform work.”
The guidance will make clear that patients and residents in care homes, hospitals and hospices “will no longer be cut off from their loved ones unless in exceptional circumstances”, the department said. Care minister Stephen Kinnock said: “No one should be separated from their loved ones unnecessarily.
“Contact with family and friends should not be seen as a luxury but a basic part of good care. These changes will protect patients and residents, give families a stronger voice, and help make sure care is more compassionate, open and humane.”
Bereaved families warn report ‘must not pull its punches’
In a powerful statement, the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group said: “The Module 3 report must not pull its punches. Years of austerity left the NHS dangerously exposed before Covid ever arrived, without the capacity, resilience or headroom needed to cope with a major shock.
“Many of our loved ones died in horrific conditions because ministers failed to strengthen the health service when they had the chance. The inquiry must not indulge the false claim pushed by Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock that the NHS coped with Covid. It did not.
“Hospitals were overwhelmed, staff were stretched beyond breaking point, and patients paid the price. The report must make clear that restoring funding and capacity is now a matter of national urgency. We are less prepared now than we were in 2020, and unless that changes, more lives will be put at risk when the next crisis comes.”
All aspects of NHS during Covid crisis examined
Chairwoman of the inquiry, Baroness Heather Hallett, looked closely at all aspects of the NHS and the role it played during the coronavirus pandemic. This included how managers led the pandemic response, the role of primary care and GPs, NHS backlogs and how the vaccine programme was integrated.
The diagnosis of long Covid and the support offered to those impacted was also analysed as part of the inquiry’s Module 3, the findings of which are due to be reported today. The third module opened on November 2, 2022, with the aim of examining “the governmental and societal response to Covid-19”. It also aimed to dissect “the impact that the pandemic had on healthcare systems, patients and health care workers”.