Parisian doctors say Covid overload could force them to choose between patients

The surge in Covid-19 infections is expected to overwhelm the 1,800 intensive care units in the Paris region “in a few days”, according to doctors, who fear being forced to select the patients they can afford to treat.

“We cannot remain silent without betraying the Hippocratic Oath,” doctors from the public hospital service in the Paris region (AP-HP) said in a statement.

“We could be forced to choose between all patients, whether they have Covid-19 or not, with priority given to adults in critical condition … in order to save as many lives as possible,” said the 41 signatories of the press release. , adding that they had never been faced with such a situation – even during the peak of the first Covid-19 wave in 2020.

Cancellations

The statement goes on to say that patient screening has, in fact, already started with the cancellation or postponement of non-critical surgery, where patients with acute symptoms of Covid-19 are put on the waiting list.

The Ile-de-France regional health agency has announced its intention to increase the total number of intensive care beds available for Covid patients to 2,200, but no date has been given.