Medical runs and 'extra deaths': secondary disasters under Shanghai lockdown

The new crown virus continues to ravage Shanghai, with more than 20,000 new infections in a single day. The government's adherence to the lockdown management and zero-clearing policies is causing more serious secondary disasters. Hemodialysis patients can't get immediate help, cancer patients can't have surgery, patients who seek medical treatment in other places are driven out of the hospital, and elderly people who have mild illnesses are also suspected of dying due to delayed diagnosis... In Shanghai, where medical resources are running on, these tragedies Can it be avoided ?

"Will you die if you don't get in?"

"I have been looking for the neighborhood committee and the city government. They said that the Jiading Central Hospital has no space, and they gave me the answer that they couldn't get in. Did I say that if I couldn't get in, I would die at home ? " 

If you can't get in, will you die at home? Wang Zhumin, a resident of Shanghai's Jiading District, asked anxiously. Because of the closure of the epidemic area since the end of March, her 77-year- old father has not had hemodialysis for seven days. His father is weak and his limbs are swollen.

For uremia patients, regular dialysis about three times a week for four hours each time is a life-sustaining guarantee. Seven days without dialysis, coupled with old age and other chronic illnesses, can mean life is at stake.

Wang Zhumin told this station that her father used to do hemodialysis at the Haihua Hospital near his home, three times a week. At the end of March, Haihua Hospital first informed the hospital staff of limited staff and shortage of beds, and then informed that the hemodialysis center was "closed" due to positive diagnoses. Wang Zhumin and her family were so anxious that they sought help from the neighborhood committee, the city government, and Ambulance 120 , but they didn't write anything .

"They also told me to find a hospital myself. I said, can I find a hospital in a special period ? If I can find a hospital,  will I come to your government ?  I said, I can't come to you in normal times. It's funny !  They It’s like  kicking a ball.” Wang Zhumin said that every day she waited, the condition of her old father got worse. They decided to go to the central hospital on the 7th to try their luck, but she and her father sat in the hospital all day without any success. And back, "I didn't even see the doctor's shadow."

On April 7 and April 8 , the reporter called Haihua Hospital and the emergency room of Jiading Central Hospital several times, but they were either on the phone or unanswered; the outpatient department was closed at the end of March. According to Haihua Hospital's WeChat account, since mid-March, the hospital has dispatched more than 500 people to "go to the front line to support nucleic acid testing." Public information from Jiading Central Hospital also shows that on March 28 , a temporary sampling team of 100 medical staff went to Pudong to support nucleic acid sampling.

Like Wang Zhumin's father, there are more than 20,000 patients in Shanghai who rely on hemodialysis to maintain their lives.

According to "China News Weekly", before the outbreak of the new crown epidemic, Shanghai's medical resources for dialysis were basically saturated. After the epidemic, some dialysis rooms were closed due to positive cases or close contacts, and some medical staff were quarantined. With a large number of medical staff being transferred from their posts to support nucleic acid testing, it is even more difficult for medical resources to fall on patients who really need it.

Since the end of March, thousands of posts asking for help from the Shanghai epidemic have appeared on Weibo every day, most of them are elderly, chronically ill, cancer or hemodialysis patients. Among them, Shen Ruiyin, a 77-year- old Shanghai hemodialysis patient, died on the evening of March 28 due to myocardial failure caused by prolonged absence of kidney dialysis. His son Shen Li complained on Weibo that his father suffers from diabetes and kidney failure and needs to take various prescription drugs every day. After being diagnosed with the new crown on March 26 , he was transferred to three hospitals one after another. In the end, he died innocently and tragically without being able to obtain medicines, be unable to perform hemodialysis, and have no family to accompany him.

"Hospitals are too busy" secondary disaster of delayed treatment

The more contagious Omicron coronavirus has ravaged Shanghai since March, with daily asymptomatic infections in Shanghai rising from single digits to more than 20,000 within a month. As of April 8 , the outbreak has accumulated more than 130,000 cases . Officials continued a series of strict "blocking and control management" measures to conduct large-scale testing, and adhered to the "dynamic clearing" policy.

 "From our current situation the medical resources in Shanghai are indeed in a state of running." In early April, Shanghai Pudong disease control doctor Zhu Weiping, Shanghai science writer Wang Jie, and a Shanghai resident made two paragraphs Recordings of the conversations circulated online.

Zhu Weiping said frankly that Shanghai has overreacted to Omicron, so that medical resources are very tight. She said professionals were "particularly desperate" at the government's efforts to sweep the city to clear the virus. "No one listens to what our professionals say. Now all of this disease has been turned into a political disease, and  so much manpower,  financial resources, and  prevention of a flu-like virus have been spent...  Look at which country is this prevention? ? ”

Qi Guoyong, a 79 -year-old Shanghai resident, believes that if there are enough medical resources, his healthy wife Zhang Siling will not suddenly change from mild to severe and die at the end of March.

Qi Guoyong told our reporter that 74 -year-old Zhang Siling was sent to the hospital on March 22 because of stomach pains, because the three hospitals around his home were closed due to the epidemic, and they were transferred to the Punan Hospital, which is far away, but he was suspected of being in the hospital. Due to the lack of manpower and misdiagnosis in the hospital, pancreatitis was first treated, but it suddenly became severe the next afternoon. It was suspected that sepsis was caused by intestinal obstruction . He died on the afternoon of the 23rd .

"My heart is very stable. My wife passed away, and I was very sad, but I couldn't do anything about it. People can't survive, but I hope the hospital can give me a positive answer... I just want to give me an explanation." Qi Guoyong said, The hospital told him that "the hospital is really too busy" because there are fever clinics and a large number of tumor patients waiting for chemotherapy due to the epidemic, but he still has many questions. Did misdiagnosis delay the timing of treatment? Had enough doctors dealt with it that all these false assumptions wouldn't have happened?   

"We are really desperate. My mother's current metastatic tumor still has the opportunity to be surgically removed, but chemotherapy has been more than 60 days, and the tumor may grow, spread or metastasize at any time. My mother has diabetes, and there is no food or medicine nearby. I can buy it, my mother is very nervous now." Ms. Lei, 33  , brought her mother with terminal cancer to Shanghai from Hangzhou for treatment. She told this station that she was originally admitted to Shanghai Fudan Cancer Hospital on March 23 . It was notified that surgery was scheduled within seven days, but a new rule was suddenly imposed on epidemic prevention and control. Patients from other places had to be isolated for 14 days before they could be hospitalized.

"When we went on the seventh day, the doctor said that although the ward is relatively empty now, we came from a different place and had to wait for 14 days ." She even asked, if there is an empty bed but can't live in it, do you have cancer? Are the dead patients worse than the new crown patients ? How critical is the situation to be scheduled for surgery ?

A joke circulating on the Internet wrote that it is now a group of exhausted medical staff, keeping a bunch of dying patients out of the hospital, and guarding the wards of the living asymptomatic infected people to brush their mobile phones.

"The operation was successful, but the patient died"

The medical run is causing various secondary disasters to be staged in various places in Shanghai. In recent weeks, at least two asthma patients have been refused treatment by medical staff on the grounds of prevention and control after the onset of the disease, resulting in death and arousing public opinion. indignant.

Miao Xiaohui, the former chief physician of Shanghai Changzheng Hospital , wrote an article on April 7 calling on the authorities to pay attention to and solve the problem of "extra deaths" under the new crown epidemic. He cited the data released by the Zhou Maigeng team of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention in the British Medical Journal BMJ in 2021 , pointing out that during the new crown epidemic, the mortality rate of chronic non-communicable diseases increased by 21% , the mortality rate of diabetes increased by 83% , and suicide The death rate increased by 66% .

Based on this data, Miao Xiaohui estimated that the number of additional deaths may be as high as 2,141 after Shanghai was completely closed down due to the new crown epidemic . "At the end of the day, the death rate from Omikron infection is far lower than the additional deaths from medical runs," he wrote.

Despite public grievances and calls from experts and scholars, there is no sign of any change in the zero-clearing policy and strict epidemic prevention measures set by the central government. The official announced that more than 2,000 military medical staff and at least 7,500 Jiangsu medical staff will be dispatched to Shanghai for support. The official propaganda vigorously promoted "tens of thousands of medical staff from all directions to help and  guard 'Shanghai' with one heart".

Wang Zhumin disagreed, saying that it only reminded her of a passage she read in a circle of friends : "The operation was successful, but the patient is already dead."

There is a food crisis in Shanghai: rich and poor are asking for help, some people want to rush out of the community to eat in prison

Since the implementation of the closure and control in Shanghai, it has faced a serious crisis of food shortages. Some people on the Internet shouted "I'm about to die", some children broke their diapers, and even Xu Xin, who has the title of "Female Buffett", went online to ask for bread and milk for help, and some people who had been hungry for 4 days simply called the police station to ask, "If you go out of the community and get arrested, will you be able to eat?" He also said, "I finally know why the common people rebelled during Qin Shi Huang's time."

"I was driven to death by you, do you know that, tell me! The supermarket is not open, what can I buy, eat, and drink? You have driven people to death!"

A man in Putuo District, Shanghai held a phone in the community and walked back and forth, yelling, saying that he lived in Putuo District and his identity was Xuhui. My parents in Xuhui District were banned for two months, and my grandmother, who lives alone, has no one to take care of. The supplies are only available until April 5th, the store cannot be opened, the employees have no food to eat, and they are still waiting to repay the mortgage. "Is the Shanghai government human? It forced the common people to resist." The man couldn't suppress his emotions and roared.

The seal and the roar of no food finally understand why the people rebelled during the Qin Shihuang period

A post-80s man living in the fifth village of Kailu starved for 4 days. He searched all government channels and could not get help. Finally, he warned "110" that the government forced the people to rebel.

Man asking for help: Hello, Central Plains Police Station, right? I'm not making trouble. If I rush out of the community now and you arrest me, will I have food?

Police station police: (what do you mean, you can't rush out of the community)

The man who asked for help: "Then now you have to help me collect the body."

The man said helplessly that the food registered on April 1 has not been received yet. He called the neighborhood committee and only got a skip-pin response, "I will overcome it again, and I will overcome it again." "There's no food here, so I'll call you back."

The man sighed and said, "Through this incident, we understand why the common people rebelled, why did the common people fight, and why did the militia revolt? It all makes sense."

Since the closure of Shanghai, materials have not been able to be delivered to all communities

Lu Media Caixin reported on the 7th that the head of a software company in Shanghai posted on WeChat Moments that at least 10% of the company’s dozens of employees in Shanghai rely on instant noodles, biscuits, and frozen food every day for maintenance. Some young people who don't start a gang are already in "danger" of completely running out of food. The article reminds, "Buying vegetables and eating is the most concerned thing for the public, and it is also the most important thing that must be guaranteed with all-out efforts."

The article quoted Liu Min, deputy director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Commerce, and admitted that "there are indeed some difficulties in ensuring the supply of living materials, such as the lack of smooth inter-provincial logistics due to the impact of the epidemic, and the lack of terminal capacity leading to untimely delivery. With the support of all parties, we Try to get through the blockages.”

In Weibo, a long list of anti-epidemic help, clearly stated the location of their community, including Yuzhou International, Pudong New Area, Gaoke East Road, Tangzhen, Pudong New Area, Leyuan Road, Jinqiao Town, Pudong New Area, and Songnan No. 1 Village, Songnan Town, Baoshan District When they arrived in Shicun and other districts, they all mourned, "I didn't receive any supplies".

"We call the above every day, because it has been sealed for many days now, and the only thing everyone lacks is food." A resident of Jiangqiao Town, Jiading, Shanghai told the common experience of everyone in the past few days.

No food, no difference between rich and poor, babies cut off diapers, takeaway, express delivery

It’s not just a small crowd, but there is also a rumor on the Internet that Xu Xin of Capital Today, known as the “Queen of Venture Capital”, needs bread and milk for help in the circle of friends. Later, he also published an article saying that because his son brought friends, there are 12 people living in the family who have high food needs. It has now been resolved! She shouted, "Let's work together and hope to return to normal life as soon as possible."

"The government has indeed distributed a batch of supplies, but even if they distribute more, the food is far from enough compared to the time of the lockdown." Miss Xia, who lives in Shanghai, told this station.

Ms. Xia described the current situation in Shanghai, saying that there are no takeaways, Taobao and express delivery have stopped, and group buying is also very difficult to buy. Every day, "Hippo" online shopping will release some quotas, but it is very difficult to grab. "Some babies have broken diapers, and the wifi at home has been broken and no one has repaired them. Tooth fillings are required, and the nerves in the teeth are exposed and cannot go out. Some people have no salt in their homes. Fruits, coffee, and snacks are already luxuries. The situation Very bad." Miss Xia said.

In an interview with this station, Mr. Gu from Shanghai said that in the more than 20 days of the lockdown, he received a total of two supplies, which is probably enough for about 10 days. They were lucky to prepare food in advance, and most people faced the sudden lockdown Not prepared at all.

Mr. Gu: "Now we are locked in the community and cannot go out to buy things. The material supply chain is gone. The online express delivery has also been interrupted and stopped. Online purchases are also not available, and there is not enough delivery. Nope, there's a problem with the food supply chain."

Not only is Shanghai facing a food shortage crisis, but on the evening of the 7th, the statement that "Shanghai will start militarized management" began to circulate on Chinese social platforms. The "Shanghai Internet Rumors" WeChat official account refuted as false rumors, and called for "do not spread rumors, do not believe in rumors".

The Shanghai Municipal Committee of the Communist Party of China wrote an open letter to party members in the city, saying, "Shanghai is the birthplace of the Communist Party of China, with the fearless spirit of 'I'll go first' and 'follow me'. 'The actual actions, no difficulty can not overcome the heroic Shanghai people, victory must belong to this glorious city.