345 Die Of Thirst In Lockdown

Hospital and care home dehydration cases soar

- Nigel Nelson Political Editor

A SHOCKING 345 non-Covid patients died of thirst in hospitals and care homes during the first lockdown.

That is a 48 percent increase on the previous five-year average of 232 deaths from dehydration over the same timescale.

The figures were compiled by the UK Statistics Authority from a six month study of non-Covid deaths between January and early July.

And they show that lack of water became the invisible killer during the darkest days of the pandemic, when care services broke down.

Care workers could not visit as they either could not obtain adequate PPE or were isolating themselves.

Nurse Lesley Carter, of Age UK, said: “It was an horrendous 12 weeks. Older people were left high and dry.

“So many had home care terminated or reduced.

“And they relied on those visits to help them get fluids. A lot just stopped drinking because they feared they could not get to the toilet.”