Coronavirus is not just a new virus to fight, it's a new way of nursing

As the number of deaths from coronavirus in Wales continues to rise, health officials are urging people to discuss with loved ones their wishes, should they get the virus and fall ill.

Twenty seven more deaths were confirmed in Wales on Monday, bringing the total number of people who have died from Covid-19 to 193.

At Swansea Bay University Health Board, they are building one of Wales' several field hospitals in preparation of a surge in coronavirus patients.

They are also converting ordinary hospital wards into special Covid-19 ones.

But it is not just a new virus they're fighting, but a new way of nursing.

At Morriston Hospital the staff wear personal protective equipment to protect staff, but they can't give the personal touch to patients that they have been trained to do.

"If a patient is going to pass away, we inform the family that the patient is passing away and then confirm that when it is done", Mark Madams, Nurse Director at Morriston Hospital told ITV News.

"But that is very different than having a family where you can support them and deal with their emotion here.

"There are opportunities for families to view their loved ones once they have passed but as I said, it is very difficult to maintain that safety which is of paramount importance.

"It's not what we were trained for. We were trained as nurses to support the family to be present, but no patient in this hospital is on their own when they die.

The reality of losing a loved one should encourage us to talk to our loved ones, one doctor has said.

Andy MacNab, an A&E consultant at Morriston said, "My father has oesophageal cancer and he recognises he is not a candidate for critical care - and he said he'd quite like to get the virus. He said he would like to go that way rather than the future he faces with cancer.

"So we had a conversation and I said, 'look Dad, if you get coronavirus and you start to get short of breath, would you want to go into hospital? They would give you oxygen and give you medication.

"As a family, we discussed that ideally he would like to stay at home and with good palliative care, be able to stay in a place he has known for many years and be as comfortable as possible."

Coronavirus: Everything you need to know