Covid Frontline 2: Dr Peter Saul of Beech Avenue Practice

SINCE I last wrote, preparations in the health service locally continue to ramp up.

I’m writing this from the new out of hours centre in Wrexham, this has moved from A&E to premises across the road at artificial limb centre.

I can’t pretend that facilities are ideal but as they say needs must. The need in this case is that the hospital need the space that the out of hours service were taking up in anticipation of having many more potentially infective cases attending.

Over the next 10 days there will be a COVID centre established at one of the central Wrexham GP practices and there will be three others set up in Flintshire, One of my colleagues here has just told me that there is one set up and running already at the Countess of Chester hospital.

The aim of this is to separate people who have got Covid and need to be seen from other patients with regular conditions who will be seen at their own GP surgeries.

The COVID centres will be staffed by local GPs on a rota basis.

The community does need to be aware that these are not places that you can roll up to if you think you have a fever, people will be seen after having had a telephone assessment would you get after dialling 111.

At my practice I’ve started to see all patients in PPE on the basis that we are getting increasing numbers of people who are likely infected but may not yet know it.

At present supplies of this kit are reasonably plentiful but obviously time will tell and there is uncertainty about when further stocks will arrive.

What we do need more of is eye protection as the virus can enter the body in droplets which come in contact with the eyes. Fingers crossed here.

One of the brilliant things that has been happening is the gratitude of the general public and patience for people working in the health service.

Last Thursday’s spontaneous clapping was fantastic and a real morale booster.

We’ve still got room for humour too. I was given one of those Ferrero Rocher chocolates, the round ones with the lumps on the surface - I was told it was a COVID chocolate!