On Tuesday, National Health Service (NHS) England sent a letter to hospitals and other medical centers asking them to carry out online or video-based consultations of patients who are at the risk of spreading the coronavirus.
Officials believe that this government move will help reduce the number of people in hospitals, thereby lowering the risk of potential transmission.
The move came after the officials launched a major public health campaign that focuses on one of the most important preventive strategies – vigorous hand washing.
On Tuesday, 12 newly diagnosed cases of coronavirus, aka COVID-19, were reported in England, bringing the total number of cases to 51.
Hospitals received the letter from NHS England outlining steps that they should take to prevent a possible surge in the number of cases.
Doctors have also been asked to consider ways to increase the availability of hospital beds and other resources through online video consultations.
The government’s plan has already set out proposals to bring back retired doctors and nurses. The plan also proposes to free up hospital beds by canceling non-urgent or non-emergency surgeries.
The new action plan for hospitals follows the launch of an expanded campaign that promotes frequent hand washing, for at least 20 seconds every time one does so.
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Matt Hancock said, “Washing hands regularly is the single most important thing that an individual can do.”
Globally, COVID-19 has affected more than 93,1000 and killed over 3,200 people so far, with the vast majority of the cases reported in China.
Meanwhile, the UK government is set to officially declare COVID-19 a “notifiable disease” in England. Last month, the Scottish government declared the virus “notifiable.”
The video-based consultations would extenuate the impact of COVID-19 on businesses as well by helping companies to seek compensation through health insurance policies.
Currently, there are four stages to the government’s response to the coronavirus – containing the spread of the virus, delaying it, mitigating its impact after it is established, and improving diagnostics and treatment through research.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, “We should be going about our business as usual.” He said schools should stay open “if possible” and they should follow advice from Public Health England.
The officials warned that the vast majority of patients in the UK may have a mild to moderate illness and some may require hospital care, while a small proportion of them may die.
Older people and young children can become infected and may suffer from severe illness, according to the officials. The government said it is possible an outbreak could come in multiple waves.
