Burton hospital nurse in chilling warning to Covid deniers

A senior sister on the front line of the battle against coronavirus has hit out at conspiracy theorists who claim the killer virus is a hoax.

Carol Hicks disputed claims the Government had either created or exaggerated the pandemic to make the rich richer and “control” people with lockdowns.

Miss Hicks has 42 years’ experience at Burton’s Queen’s Hospital and the 60-year-old says she has experienced nothing like this before.

She told Staffordshire Live: “Unless they (the conspiracy theorists) want to come here and see for themselves, they should listen to what the Government is saying.

“We still have to look after each other, staying safe, keeping a two-metre distance and wearing masks.”

Her words come as thousands of protesters gathered up and down the country claiming the virus does not exist.

Others believe the true figures of cases and deaths are being inflated.

Miss Hicks is the senior sister on Ward 6 and the coronary care unit, usually treating patients with heart conditions.

However, after the pandemic started in March, Ward 6 started to treat Covid patients, becoming what is known as a “red ward”.

It has since returned to its old status as a “green ward”.

Miss Hicks said: “I have been here at Burton for 42 years and I have never seen anything like it. It’s completely different – it’s a pandemic.

“It is real, the amount of patients we had with respiratory disorders.

“We started wearing masks, PPE, changing and doing things differently.

“It’s uncomfortable on a 12-hour shift but I’ve got used to it.

“It’s distressing at times. It was completely new to us.

“People could be well on admission with no symptoms and deteriorate rapidly, but then we’ve a lot of patients go home as well – not everyone was dying.”

Asked if she had ever treated anyone with coronavirus who maintained it was a hoax, she said: “We haven’t had people come in saying it’s a hoax with coronavirus, but we have had people say ‘that mask isn’t going to protect you’.

“We feel comfortable wearing them for the protection of ourselves and our patients.”

Those who believe the figures are inflated often say “coronavirus” has been put as a cause of death on the death certificate, when it should not have been.

Miss Hicks said: “It’s not a hoax. A lot of people with it have long-term conditions they’ve managed to live with, but it’s Covid which ends their lives. They haven’t the strength to fight it.”

She paid tribute to her team, who have gone above and beyond the call of duty during the pandemic, saying: “We have a really great team.

“We work together. It’s been hard but we’ve got through it.”

Worryingly, Miss Hicks has also seen a drop in the amount of heart disease patients she normally sees, claiming they may be frightened to come into hospital in the middle of a pandemic.

She said: “We have not been seeing many patients with heart disease come in as they normally would.

“If they have a problem they need to come to hospital.

“We may have stopped visitors at the moment but hopefully that will change and we have things in place for patients such as PEE, and masks.”

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