Hospital Wards Are Full of Kids Battling Life With RSV Virus

Hospital Wards Are Full of Kids Battling Life With RSV Virus

Hospital wards are full of kids battling life with RSV Virus. HOSPITAL The top nurse in England has warned that there are many children fighting a life-threatening illness onwards across the nation.

Hospital incidences of the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) winter bug are at a five-year high, according to chief nursing officer Dame Ruth May. She said that infections are still increasing and that paediatric intensive care is 99 per cent filled.

According to UK Health Security Agency data, one-third of children under the age of five who have suspected RSV test positive.

Dame Ruth told the NHS board, "We have rising RSV – we see it every year, but we are presently at the pinnacle for 5 years, with critical care at 99% capacity across England.

Although we have not yet reached the point where the RSV numbers are decreasing, we are making great progress. The top nurse also mentioned that in some regions, due to ward congestion, children must be relocated between hospitals.

According to Dr. Camilla Kingdon, president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, paediatric teams are particularly busy this winter because of a lack of staff and a rise in demand.

Along with other diseases and problems, RSV and other respiratory infections are partly to blame for this rise in demand. According to the UKHSA, children under five account for the majority of flu-related hospital admissions.

According to official statistics, children's intensive care units were 90% filled last week, while general wards were 82% full. At the same time last year, general beds were 77% filled and critical care was 82% full.

RSV is very widespread around this time of year and can be severe for children under two, especially for newborns and those who were delivered prematurely, according to Dr Conall Watson of the UK Health Security Agency.

According to the Health Service Journal, more than 1,000 kids were denied admittance to critical care last year due to a lack of beds.

1,345 ICU referrals were declined last year, according to Freedom of Information Act statistics from 19 NHS hospital trusts. Experts attribute this to a staffing deficit.