Indian-Origin UK Medics Chief Says Doctors' Lives At Risk

The Indian-origin chief of a key professional union for doctors in the UK has warned the government that medical staff fighting against the coronavirus pandemic across National Health Service (NHS) hospitals in the country are being put at risk due to the continued lack of personal protective equipment (PPE).

Dr Chaand Nagpaul, the British Medical Association (BMA) Council Chair, also called on the authorities to urgently investigate the factors behind the "disproportionate" numbers of black and minority ethnic (BAME) doctors among the frontline fatalities from the deadly virus.

"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, including 11 doctors in the UK," said Dr Nagpaul in a statement released by BMA on Friday.

"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," he said.

The BMA said it has learned that PPE supplies, including items such as aprons and face masks, are running at dangerously low levels in London and Yorkshire and that some pieces of equipment are no longer available, forcing doctors into "impossible situations".

"The government is therefore, forcing doctors to place themselves and their patients in grave danger by expecting them to treat Covid-19 patients without adequate PPE. The evidence comes just two weeks after the government said that supplies of PPE were plentiful, and that equipment was flowing out to trusts," the BMA said.

According to a recent survey conducted by the union, more than half of doctors working in high-risk environments said there were either shortages or no supply at all of adequate face masks, while 65 per cent said they did not have access to eye protection.

Furthermore, 55 per cent said they felt "pressurised" to work in a high-risk area despite not having adequate PPE.

"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," Dr Nagpaul said.

"This is an immensely difficult position to be in, but is ultimately down to the government's chronic failure to supply us with the proper equipment. We cannot continue like this, and need to see enough, adequate PPE delivered to staff across the country as soon as possible, not just for our health, but also, and most importantly, our patients'."

While it remains unclear whether the lack of PPE is directly linked to the recorded deaths of doctors in the UK so far, the BMA council chief also urged action on assessing the factors behind the large numbers of BAME doctors and nurses among the victims of the virus.

"We have heard the virus does not discriminate between individuals but there''s no doubt there appears to be a manifest disproportionate severity of infection in BAME people and doctors.

This has to be addressed – the government must act now," Dr Nagpaul said.

The BMA''s intervention comes days after the British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO) wrote to the Chief Medical Officer of England, Professor Chris Whitty, and Medical Director of NHS England Stephen Powis requesting all the official data available on Covid-19 hospital admissions for an in-depth research into the greater susceptibility of BAME and Indian-origin patients developing more severe symptoms of coronavirus and dying of Covid-19.

BAPIO said, "We need a better understanding of the issues of BAME mortality in the context of the general population, particularly if it helps us manage sick and vulnerable groups, and so that we can be accurate in our messaging.

"We are therefore asking that the data for Covid cases, and most certainly those who have died as a result of the illness, incorporates ethnicity and profession, as well as the usual demographic data."
Indian-origin doctors, who make up a large chunk of the NHS workforce, are already among the victims of the deadly virus in the UK, including cardiac surgeon Wales-based Jitendra Kumar Rathod, 58, originally from Gujarat, and Birmingham-based Hamza Pacheeri, 80, from Kerala.

BAPIO has also urged the authorities to deploy senior and retired medics away from frontline duties until more evidence can be collated on the ethnic variables for Covid-19.

The UK's Department of Health has said it is working to protect all communities and has repeatedly pledged a boost to PPE supplies for NHS medical staff. UK health secretary Matt Hancock updated on Friday that 742 million pieces of protective gear had been delivered so far and that daily deliveries would start next week.

"But there''s clearly a huge task ahead to keep it flowing and to make sure that those who need it get it," Mr Hancock said.