Lockdown impact on coronavirus to be seen soon, predicts expert
A microbiologist based in the Black Country says he is confident the impact of the coronavirus lockdown will begin to be seen soon.
Aiden Plant, from Walsall Manor Hospital, said while cases were still currently increasing he expected there would soon be a "plateau".
More than 7,000 people have now died in the UK after testing positive for Covid-19.
The West Midlands has experienced more deaths than anywhere else outside London, piling pressure on the local NHS.
Mr Plant said: "Our cases resemble the national picture. We are seeing a gradual increase in cases.
"I hoped we would be starting to see a peak, and starting to see a plateau but it is too early to say at the moment.
"The Government advice is the next 12 months we could see significant disruption."
Mr Plant speculated the arrival of warmer weather in summer could help weaken the virus, but insisted that it was the lockdown that would be the most effective tool.
He said: "Four seasonal viruses circulate every year. Viruses end very abruptly in April so we can be hopeful.
"The lockdown I think will have a very significant impact. We are starting to see demonstrations of that in Italy and Spain where cases are starting to fall."
Mr Plant said support would be available for staff working in intensive care where coronavirus patients have died, if they wanted it.
He said: "Staff in the ICU are very vulnerable and we are doing everything we can to make sure they are supported.
"A lot of help is being offered and there is the Headspace app available. Some people want to talk about it, others don't. It's about meeting the needs of staff."
The medical expert also said there were "adequate supplies" of personal protective equipment at Walsall Manor, following criticism of the Government, but that it was being reviewed "on a daily basis".
