An Italian nurse told Euronews that the country is under so much pressure that doctors have been forced to prioritize patients who have more opportunities to live.
Mauro D'Ambrosio, who works at Fatebenefratelli Hospital in Milan, said patients happen to stay more than 15 days in intensive care, with the average being 5-6 days. This is a major problem by blocking hospital beds.
He said:
"If we understand that a patient is in poor health and is no longer likely to survive, we are obliged to give that bed to someone who can live. This is a choice that is not readily accepted ethically but medically gives us the opportunity to have more people living. ?
The following added:
"The ratio between patients and nurses is 1: 12-14, while it should be 1: 6."
Another nurse, working at a hospital in Lombardy, said "the situation is worse than portrayed in the media".
?We are in hundreds of cases in our hospital. Half the staff is dedicated to patients with Covid-19. The situation is terrible. Anesthetists have to choose who will put the ventilator on and who will die. ?
A 60-year-old doctor told La Reublica:
?There are 60-80 patients a day. If this wave does not fall, the health system is in collapse. We can go to a natural disaster. ?
Patients pump oxygen directly into the lungs through a tube. Doctors say that in cases where patients do not have sufficient levels of oxygen in the body, they are forced to remove the tube and place it in a patient most likely to escape. If a person between the ages of 80-95 has trouble breathing, they probably won't live. If no more than three organs are working, it means he will die 100%.
?It's a terrible sentence to say. But unfortunately we are not in the condition to expect miracles. it's the reality. ?
Doctors say that when patients are in their last hours of life, they communicate with relatives via video call as visits are not allowed. Dr. Cortellaro, director of the emergency room at Borromeo Hospital, said:
?One woman was about to die. She asked me to speak to her granddaughter. I called her. He died and then died. I have a lot of phone numbers. Call them a farewell list. ?
