Vulnerable patients

The government recently sent out letters to those who have clinical conditions which are likely to put them at the highest risk of mortality and severe morbidity from Covid-19. This group were advised that they should undergo strict social isolation for at least 12 weeks and included the following people:

  1. Solid organ transplant recipients
  2. People with specific cancers
  3. People with severe respiratory conditions including all cystic fibrosis, severe asthma and severe COPD
  4. People with rare diseases and inborn errors of metabolism that significantly increase the risk of infections (such as SCID, homozygous sickle cell disease)
  5. People on immunosuppression therapies sufficient to significantly increase risk of infection
  6. People who are pregnant with significant heart disease, congenital or acquired

 

The following who were not written to individually have also been asked to take steps to reduce their social interactions in order to reduce the transmission of coronavirus:

  • aged 70 or older (regardless of medical conditions)
  • under 70 with an underlying health condition listed below (i.e. anyone instructed to get a flu jab as an adult each year on medical grounds):
  • chronic (long-term) respiratory diseases, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema or bronchitis
  • chronic heart disease, such as heart failure
  • chronic kidney disease
  • chronic liver disease, such as hepatitis
  • chronic neurological conditions, such as Parkinson’s disease, motor neurone disease, multiple sclerosis (MS), a learning disability or cerebral palsy
  • diabetes
  • problems with your spleen – for example, sickle cell disease or if you have had your spleen removed
  • a weakened immune system as the result of conditions such as HIV and AIDS, or medicines such as steroid tablets or chemotherapy
  • being seriously overweight (a BMI of 40 or above)
  • those who are pregnant

 

A subset of this group have clinical conditions which are also likely to put them at the highest risk of mortality and severe morbidity from Covid-19. We are starting to help the government identify these patients, but if you feel you have a medical condition that makes you vulnerable to Covid-19 then please register yourself, or ask someone to do it for you, at https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus-extremely-vulnerable and say whether or not you need support.

Please find below a link to the Government guidance. This guidance covers the whole of the UK population and not just those who have been sent a letter by the government. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-on-social-distancing-and-for-vulnerable-people/guidance-on-social-distancing-for-everyone-in-the-uk-and-protecting-older-people-and-vulnerable-adults