“Νο problem if intubated patients wait 24-48 hours for ICU bed, we give them oxygen,” says State Minister

Greek state minister Giorgos Gerapetritis is a lawyer and boviously a self-proclaimed pneumonologist specialized in Covid-19. “There is no problem if an intubated Covid-patient awaits 24-48 hours outside ICU,” he claimed on Wednesday. He said that “there is no need for additional ICU beds or requisition of private clinics< and added “we supply them with oxygen, anyway.”.

Gerapetritis’ cynical statement to Parapolitika FM,  came as two intubated patients died in Laiko Hospital after they had waited for an ICU bed for four days.

Tuesday afternoon, workers at public hospitals in Athens had said that over 60 intubated patients were waiting in normal wards for an ICU bed and some were even on ranch beds.

Public hospital doctors have already sound alarm over what they describe as “unmanageable waiting list for Covid -19 patients waiting for an ICU bed” and demand requisition of private hospitals.

Health experts and government officials see the next 10 days as a decisive test of the National Health System’s (ESY) resilience in the fight against the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

Covid-19 patients in ICU reached 699 on Tuesday.

Despite the allocation of two big Athens general hospitals into Covid-only facilities, the pressure on public hospitals remain immense and there are reports that authorities are considering to designate more general hospitals for Covid-patients only as of next week.

On Monday, the Health Ministry ordered the requisition of 206 private doctors’ services to assist the public health system.