Stormont leaders plan to restrict travel to US to focus on coronavirus fight

Stormont leaders are set to scale back their St Patrick’s Day visit to the United States in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

The PA news agency has learned that First Minister Arlene Foster and Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill are planning to cancel the planned New York leg of their tour early next week.

The DUP leader and Sinn Fein deputy president are still expected to travel to Washington where they will hold a series of political meetings in the US capital later this week.

This is believed to be in response to developments around Covid-19, with leaders set to limit time spent away from Stormont.

The Executive Office has not yet officially confirmed this decision.

A spokesman said: “Ministers plan to travel to the United States next week to meet with political and business leaders. The exact arrangements will depend on their wider ministerial responsibilities, including executive preparations to combat Covid-19. Further details of the visit will be provided in due course.”

Health authorities in Northern Ireland have said routine hospital visits and operations could be postponed if COVID-19 infects a large number of people.

It would be possible to free up space in wards and add more intensive care unit beds to the 100 already available.

If the virus spreads widely in the community, drive-through screening, the creation of special pods separate from emergency departments and home testing kits may be necessary.

An NHS statement said: “The health and social care system is also planning for possible staff reductions in hospitals and communities as a result of coronavirus to mitigate these risks.

“Depending on the demands on the system in the coming months, trusts (that provide healthcare services) may need to consider postponing routine elective visits and surgeries to focus on urgent coronavirus-related needs.”

The aim is to “flatten” the main peak of community transmission and delay it until the summer when services are less stressed.

Medical staff are currently in isolation, said Dr Michael McBride, Northern Ireland’s Chief Medical Officer.

He added: “What we do is plan for every eventuality.”

One person in Northern Ireland has been diagnosed with the disease.

Dr. McBride added that approximately 99% of those affected will recover completely and 95% will experience mild to moderate symptoms that will not require hospital treatment.

These figures are based on data from China, the source of the infection, and these figures will change as member states receive information from European systems that are more in line with data from Northern Ireland.

Dr McBride said: “There are some steps we could take in time to delay the impact of the virus.

“We could, for example, think about steps related to social distancing, something related to mass gatherings, something related to schools, that could perhaps prevent wider spread of the virus in the community.

“This could shift the peak into spring and summer when we know there is less demand on our services, and in fact this could lower the height of the peak and the number of people affected.”

He added that they plan to group patients in designated areas or departments and recalled that similar actions were taken in response to the H5N1 bird flu virus.

“We’ve been here before, we’ve done this before, and we will implement similar steps again if necessary.”

Testing options include dedicated drive-through sites or special pods where the test will be conducted by staff wearing protective equipment.

Doctors want to prevent potential cases from showing up in medical clinics or emergency departments and spreading the virus further.

Alternatives may also include community testing, where the procedure is given to the person, or home testing kits.

Miriam McCarthy, director of the Northern Ireland Health and Social Care Board, said intensive care beds had been prepared.

A virus patient treated in a single room will experience a “negative pressure” where air is sucked back into the room rather than mixed with other areas where some patients’ immune systems may be weakened.

She said: “We are working to ensure that critical care options are protected for the sickest people.

“We have around 100 beds in Northern Ireland for adults and children. We may need all that capacity to cope with those who have the virus.”