Heatwave! Clothes & Roads Melt!

Today's maximum temperature was 33 degrees Celsius in the shade! Gritting trucks were out in force today spreading crushed rock onto melting tarmac!

Some schools have closed early for health & safety reasons. Unions are calling for informal wear to be allowed to ease working conditions.

The Department of Health today, issued a "Level 3" Heatwave Alert.

How many doctors or nurses are aware of this Heatwave alert?And what does a "Level 3 Heatwave actually entail?

The Heatwave Plan is published in a glossy document crammed with the usual buzz words of "awareness", "review", "surveillance" & "escalation plan".

It goes on to say that, health professionals should ensure that, ".......people at risk are not discharged to unsuitable accommodation or reduced care during a heatwave."

I wonder how impressed the discharge manager would be if I used this as a reason not to discharge my elderly patients back to sheltered accomodation?

Dr Nick is a simple guy & to him, this Heatwave Plan contains a lot of words with little meaningful content.

There is talk of increasing "daily visits" & "commissioning" additional social & community support by involving informal carers, volunteers and care workers. In reality, this means relatives are reminded not to forget nan at home & visit her more often.

I doubt if social services have much reserve capacity & stepping up visits to the vulnerable, is akin to Hitler ordering armies which no longer existed when Berlin was completely surrounded in the dying stages of the World War. You can read the Heatwave Plan here.

Don't get me wrong, this heatwave is a serious health risk. But producing this plan is is a waste of taxpayer's money. For the public, NHS Direct has got simple but effective advice.

The worst is yet to come however, as Wednesday is forecasted to be worse at 35 degrees according to BBC Weather & could become Britain's hottest day ever! We could even "escalate" to Heatwave Level 4. Don't get me started now!!