The thrilling stories of doctors in Italy: We choose who to save

An Italian nurse told Euronews that the country is under so much pressure that doctors have been forced to give priority to patients who are more likely to live.

Mauro D'Ambrosio, who works at the Fatebenefratell hospital in Milan, said patients happen to stay more than 15 days in intensive therapy, while the average is 5-6 days. This brings a big problem by blocking beds in the hospital.

He said: “If we understand that a patient is in serious health condition and no longer likely to survive, we are obliged to give that bed to someone who can live. This is a choice that is not easily accepted ethically, but medically allows for more people to live. ”

Next, he added: “The report between patients and nurses is 1:12-14, while it should be 1:6. ”

Another nurse, working at a hospital in Lombardi, said the “situata is worse than portrayed in the media”. We're hundreds of cases at our hospital. Half the staff is dedicated to patients with Coddy-19. The situation is terrible. Anestheists must choose whom they will place the ventilation machine and who they will let die.” A 60-year-old doctor told La Replica: “Come 60-80 patients a day. If this wave doesn't fall, the health system is in collapse. We can go to a natural disaster. ”

Patients are pumped oxygen into the lungs through a tube. Doctors say that in cases where patients no longer have sufficient oxygen levels in the organism, they are forced to remove the tube and place it on a patient who is most likely to survive. If a person between 80-95 years of age has trouble breathing, he probably won't live. If he doesn't have more than three organs, it means he's gonna die 100%. It's a terrible sentence to say. But unfortunately, we're not in the mood to expect miracles. It's reality. ”

Doctors say that when patients are in the last few hours of their life, they communicate with relatives through a video phone call, as no visits are allowed. Dr. Cortelero, director of the Borromeo Hospital emergency room, said: “A woman was about to change her life. He asked me to talk to his niece. I called him. They spoke and then changed their lives. I got a lot of numbers on my phone. I call them goodbye lists. ”

In Italy the number of infected is 15,113, and 1,016 have lost their lives.