Key medicines used to treat patients in intensive care are in "relatively short supply."

This includes anaesthetic medicines which have become "a bit stretched", according to he Royal College of Anaesthetists.

Speaking to the BBC, ones consultant told the BBC that alternatives are being used in the Midlands after supplies started "running low."

Dr Ron Daniels, said: "We are also in short supply of noradrenaline, used to treat life-threateningly low blood pressure, and are now using these drugs only on people who really need them and using older drugs on people who need less intensive support."

Dr Daniels admitted that the quality of care for patients in ICU wards would "likely be lower" in the peak of the crisis, not just for coronavirus patients.

Dr Chaand Nagpaul, council chair of the British Medical Association, said: "Without this medication, doctors have no choice but to try to find substitutes."

"This may affect how long patients remain on ventilators, which are in short supply, as well as ultimately impacting their chances of recovery," he added. "This needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency."