From the NHS frontline: I don’t feel a hero but the clapping is amazing

The clapping is actually amazing on Thursday nights.

Last week I opened my door and neighbours pointed to me as one of the heroes. I took a bow. In my cycling shorts.

I’m lucky, I get to exercise without the inquisition. I don’t feel like a hero. Just doing my job here, boss.

But, yes, I get up and go to work to face sick patients and am doing my best to get them better, or get them better enough to get home.

Some have Covid, some don’t, and unfortunately some are infected in hospital. That’s not so good. Better to avoid that if we can.

It’s totally obvious that we should test every admission.

We admitted a 90-year-old from a nursing home where residents were dying, who —because of protocol — had been tested for HIV on admission but not for Covid.

In the midst of the worst pandemic we still don’t check our admissions where, although “atypical’”, it’s probably going to be Covid. Except we do. Test for Covid. Under the radar, we check them all.

You can no more tell a Covid patient from a clean patient than you can tell two playing cards face down. It’s a guess. So we just test them, and we don’t make a fuss about “the policy”.

However, the tide might just be on the turn. It’s rumoured that the supply chain for Covid testing kits is running more smoothly.

Listen to The Leader: Coronavirus Daily podcast

Oh my, news that we blanket test all admissions to hospital would be amazing. Christmas Day.