I want to start by making two points: Firstly, this post is about deaths. This isn’t an abstract concept – there were real people who were alive one day and dead the next. I knew some people who died during the Covid waves in 2020 and 2021, including one very good friend, and I miss them all. I ask that readers try to bear this in mind when thinking about the concepts that I’ll explore in this post.
I love the balance and nuance pf your article which is necessary, of course, because it is almost impossible to make any conclusive argument on intention. However, one thing, IMO, that is conclusive is that "centralisation" is the root problem. Our society has evolved into an incredibly lazy one that relies way too much on credentialism and authority. This laziness is not just the benefit club, lounging about on sofas at the expense of productive members of society, it is also the doctors you talk about. Yes, NICE is absolutely at fault if it is a set of legal guidelines that doctors should follow but is there not a mechanism for doctors to challenge NICE, no matter how long it takes? If not, that is exactly the problem, as always. Too much power concentrated in the hands of few doesn't need to be corrupted to yield sub-optimal outcomes. Decentralisation is the solution for public health and all the other failures of the current government system.
This is rearing is head a lot currently and I think there are major crossed wires. So to clarify I am a GP worked through the "pandemic" across 3 practices in the North West. At no point did I ever subscribe to the death rate, lockdown and am unjibbed.
Just to be clear I think there have been many,many catastrophic problems with how COVID was handled -failure to admit, inappropriate discharges , lack of access to service (or fear from patients taking up service), loneliness, failure to protect elderly by discharging positive cases into homes or with vulnerable spouses etc all contributed to deaths and are unacceptable -I do not wish in any way to defend these actions.
What I do not believe happened was lots of people were given midazolam early and inappropriately - I have many contacts around the country as you might imagine and have seen nothing to suggest this. What didhappen was that in March 2020 a concerted effort was made to look at patients in whom they had either already expressed wish never to be admitted to hospital or it was manifestly clear admission was not appropriate and their end of life care plans were updated. Alongside this just in case (JIC) drugs would be issued to be available -this includes midazolam and morphine. This is good practice and efficient GP practices would have mostly already have this covered but many would have found patients in whom this had not been done and caught up. To be clear this is what should happen to avoid suffering from delays contacting out of hours doctors and pharmacies to try and access drugs that should be available already.
Hence the spike in prescribing -I saw no evidence of increased usage. Can I say it never happened - no , do I think the issue re midazolam is however is largely explained by the above- absolutely yes.
Absolutely, decentralization. Until 3 years ago, I don’t believe governments interfered in the practice of medicine much, if at all, or if they did I just wasn’t aware. But same issue of “rules” in the US for hospital “treatments” with Resemdivir (sp?) & vents that killed. And now I hear LGB-FJB would like to introduce laws to curtail or prohibit off-label use of medications. Iver & Hydroxy, anyone? And/or regulating the sale of simple vitamins. It’s all so sinister & unhinged.
“It is important to note that these guidelines came from NICE – this isn’t a simple guidance for medics, but a set of rules that they have to follow unless they have good reason to do otherwise.”
I was just following the rules has been the defence of war criminals, mass murderers and ordinary men doing the wrong thing throughout the ages. Your confidence in your fellow humans is admirable but probably misplaced. Cold hard statistics don’t lie however much people try to bend them to their narrative and the peak of non-Covid deaths in the spring of 2020 is a reminder that even in the medical profession, bad things can be done by good people following bad rules.
Well done. I believe your middle ground explanation is correct because acknowledged drug-induced euthanasia is routinely used to end lives ever day. This edict from above in 2020 appeared to accelerate that process.
I have recently been made aware of the Memorial Hospital incident in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
I cannot actually believe I didn't know about this incident, nor that it has never been cited during the covid crisis / midazolam discussions, because there are SO many parallels .
Basically, panic and fear led to doctors and nurses deciding to euthenize a load of patients with midazolam and opiates.
A parish district attorney wanted to prosecute but the state AG and machinery of the US judicial system stepped in to stop it.
In the midst of this Zero Sum Game - these Hunger Games - invented by our rulers for our enrichment and edification - death is life and life death, men women and women men. Up is down and “you will have nothing and you will be happy”.
"Doctors aren’t evil people (with a few obvious exceptions) and wouldn’t go along with ‘orders from above’ to commit such atrocities."
This is, historically, a provably false statement, but then we also have this recent evidence. Apologies for how distressing this all is, but if evil needs to be stopped it first has to be noticed.
Covid deaths in early 2020 and the use of Midazolam
I love the balance and nuance pf your article which is necessary, of course, because it is almost impossible to make any conclusive argument on intention. However, one thing, IMO, that is conclusive is that "centralisation" is the root problem. Our society has evolved into an incredibly lazy one that relies way too much on credentialism and authority. This laziness is not just the benefit club, lounging about on sofas at the expense of productive members of society, it is also the doctors you talk about. Yes, NICE is absolutely at fault if it is a set of legal guidelines that doctors should follow but is there not a mechanism for doctors to challenge NICE, no matter how long it takes? If not, that is exactly the problem, as always. Too much power concentrated in the hands of few doesn't need to be corrupted to yield sub-optimal outcomes. Decentralisation is the solution for public health and all the other failures of the current government system.
This is rearing is head a lot currently and I think there are major crossed wires. So to clarify I am a GP worked through the "pandemic" across 3 practices in the North West. At no point did I ever subscribe to the death rate, lockdown and am unjibbed.
Just to be clear I think there have been many,many catastrophic problems with how COVID was handled -failure to admit, inappropriate discharges , lack of access to service (or fear from patients taking up service), loneliness, failure to protect elderly by discharging positive cases into homes or with vulnerable spouses etc all contributed to deaths and are unacceptable -I do not wish in any way to defend these actions.
What I do not believe happened was lots of people were given midazolam early and inappropriately - I have many contacts around the country as you might imagine and have seen nothing to suggest this. What didhappen was that in March 2020 a concerted effort was made to look at patients in whom they had either already expressed wish never to be admitted to hospital or it was manifestly clear admission was not appropriate and their end of life care plans were updated. Alongside this just in case (JIC) drugs would be issued to be available -this includes midazolam and morphine. This is good practice and efficient GP practices would have mostly already have this covered but many would have found patients in whom this had not been done and caught up. To be clear this is what should happen to avoid suffering from delays contacting out of hours doctors and pharmacies to try and access drugs that should be available already.
Hence the spike in prescribing -I saw no evidence of increased usage. Can I say it never happened - no , do I think the issue re midazolam is however is largely explained by the above- absolutely yes.
Absolutely, decentralization. Until 3 years ago, I don’t believe governments interfered in the practice of medicine much, if at all, or if they did I just wasn’t aware. But same issue of “rules” in the US for hospital “treatments” with Resemdivir (sp?) & vents that killed. And now I hear LGB-FJB would like to introduce laws to curtail or prohibit off-label use of medications. Iver & Hydroxy, anyone? And/or regulating the sale of simple vitamins. It’s all so sinister & unhinged.
“It is important to note that these guidelines came from NICE – this isn’t a simple guidance for medics, but a set of rules that they have to follow unless they have good reason to do otherwise.”
I was just following the rules has been the defence of war criminals, mass murderers and ordinary men doing the wrong thing throughout the ages. Your confidence in your fellow humans is admirable but probably misplaced. Cold hard statistics don’t lie however much people try to bend them to their narrative and the peak of non-Covid deaths in the spring of 2020 is a reminder that even in the medical profession, bad things can be done by good people following bad rules.
Well done. I believe your middle ground explanation is correct because acknowledged drug-induced euthanasia is routinely used to end lives ever day. This edict from above in 2020 appeared to accelerate that process.
Hi,
I have recently been made aware of the Memorial Hospital incident in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
I cannot actually believe I didn't know about this incident, nor that it has never been cited during the covid crisis / midazolam discussions, because there are SO many parallels .
Basically, panic and fear led to doctors and nurses deciding to euthenize a load of patients with midazolam and opiates.
A parish district attorney wanted to prosecute but the state AG and machinery of the US judicial system stepped in to stop it.
All the same elements are there. Uncanny.
See:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Memorial_Medical_Center_and_Hurricane_Katrina
In the midst of this Zero Sum Game - these Hunger Games - invented by our rulers for our enrichment and edification - death is life and life death, men women and women men. Up is down and “you will have nothing and you will be happy”.
"Doctors aren’t evil people (with a few obvious exceptions) and wouldn’t go along with ‘orders from above’ to commit such atrocities."
This is, historically, a provably false statement, but then we also have this recent evidence. Apologies for how distressing this all is, but if evil needs to be stopped it first has to be noticed.
https://off-guardian.org/2020/06/11/watch-perspectives-on-the-pandemic-9/
https://rumble.com/v12rphn-a-good-death-midazolam-morphine-haloperidol-hyoscine-documentary.html