The death toll from coronavirus is set to cross 10,000 over the weekend with figures released on Saturday putting the cumulative total at 9,875 dead (day rise of 917) and 78,991 positives case, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson made “very good progress” in hospital.
The figures related to deaths and cases in hospital; they do not include those in retirement homes, care homes and hospices, raising concern that the overall death figure may have already crossed 10,000. Health secretary Matt Hancock believes the peak is yet to come.
Downing Street issued a brief update on Johnson: “The Prime Minister continues to make very good progress.”
Hancock faced mounting criticism from health professionals and others over “dangerously low” levels of person protection equipment in some hospitals, despite the military and others involved in delivering millions of pieces across the UK.
Chaand Nagpaul of the British Medical Association said: “No doctor should ever have to be in harm’s way when they go to work, and in these unprecedented times, this has never been more important”.
“This is not the flu. We are dealing with an unknown, highly-infectious, and potentially deadly virus that has already claimed the lives of several healthcare workers. It is absurd that the people trained to treat this disease are the ones who are not being appropriately protected – and without them, we face real disaster”.
Hancock revealed that 19 health professionals had died of coronavirus in recent days, most of them from Indian, Asian, Middle Eastern and Afro-Caribbean communities. They include Indian-origin Jitendra Kumar Rathod.
Nagpaul said: “This is absolutely tragic. In terms of doctors who I represent, it’s extremely concerning that 10 of the 11 doctors are from black and Asian minority backgrounds, almost all of them having come from overseas having given their lives to the health service”.
Ministers and health officials reiterated the core message to stay at home, to resist visiting local beach or park despite the warm weather, with temperatures expected to reach as high as 26°C (78.80°F) in some areas over the Easter holidays weekend.
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