UK troops deliver protective gear to hospitals

The UK's military was drafted in to help the National Health Service (NHS) this week, to assist Britain's medical staff prepare for the fight against the new coronavirus.

20,000 military personnel are on standby as part of the Covid Support Force, delivering personal protection equipment (PPE) and ventilators to hospitals.

But many medical staff have claimed the response comes too late, and that they are currently working without adequate PPE, putting them at high risk of contracting the new virus and passing it onto their patients.

As hospitals brace for an expected rise of critically ill patients when the pandemic reaches its peak across the United Kingdom, they say they are risking their lives because they haven't been equipped with adequate protective gear.

Dr Nishant Joshi, an Accident & Emergency doctor at a hospital near London, said he is gravely concerned.

"I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would be short of a surgical mask in this country. I never thought in my wildest dreams that we would be feeling unsafe as doctors," he said.

George Zumbadze, a freelance GP who works at a urgent care centre, was so concerned about the lack of adequate PPE that was provided for him that he bought his own face visor and apron from a hardware store - only to be sent home for not wearing NHS prescribed equipment.

In an attempt to cope with the expected surge in patients, the government has converted large conference facilities into temporary field hospitals - the first complete facility being the NHS Nightingale Hospital in east London's ExCel Centre.

In addition, to cope with staff shortages, the government has put a call out to recently retired doctors and nurses, with 20,000 medical professionals signing up so far.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks.

For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia, and could lead to death.