a candidate for a ventilator

[GoodTaste]

Does "a candidate for a ventilator" mean "a patient who is qualified to use a ventilator"?

The logic of "but" is not clear to me. The speaker appears saying that those the people are addicted using their mobile phones, but they are usually poor to hold a telphone (not mobile phone) conversation.

==========================
But, in retrospect, clinicians might have been overzealous at times. Schultz recalls asking patients to get off of their mobile phones so he could put them on a ventilator, but a candidate for a ventilator normally wouldn’t be well enough to hold a telephone conversation. As physicians became more comfortable treating people with COVID-19, many realized that early ventilation was not necessary, says Fan.

Source: Nature Nov.11, 2020

Why do COVID death rates seem to be falling?
Hard-won experience, changing demographics and reduced strain on hospitals are all possibilities — but no one knows how long the change will last.

 

[PeterCW]

You need to consider the sentence in the context of the rest of the passage.

 

[GoodTaste]

I reread it and am still not clear.

Attending a telephone conversation is a form of social distancing; using smart or mobile phones is another. They are equally acceptable to combat the pandemic.

 

[tzfujimino]

Is a patient who is well enough to hold a telephone conversation really a candidate for a ventilator?

What do you think?

 

[GoesStation]

Does "a candidate for a ventilator" mean "a patient who is qualified to use a ventilator"?

I wouldn’t put it quite like that but you're on the right track. In medical English, a candidate for a treatment is a patient for whom the potential benefit is greater than the risk.

 

[jutfrank]

Does "a candidate for a ventilator" mean "a patient who is qualified to use a ventilator"?

It refers to a patient who qualifies for ventilator treatment.

The logic of "but" is not clear to me. The speaker appears saying that those the people are addicted using their mobile phones, but they are usually poor to hold a telphone (not mobile phone) conversation.

No, you've misunderstood.

The use of but is to show that the writer sees the situation as illogical. Let me show you the logic like this:

If a patient qualifies for ventilator treatment, they are not able to use a mobile phone.

Correspondingly,

If a patient is able to use a mobile phone, they do not qualify for ventilator treatment.

Following this logic, the proposition A patient is able to use a mobile phone and qualifies for ventilator treatment is illogical.

 

[Tarheel]

The logic of "but" is not clear to me. The speaker appears to be saying that those [STRIKE]the[/STRIKE] people are addicted to using their mobile phones, but they are usually unable to hold a telephone (not mobile phone) conversation.

Perhaps:

addicted to their mobile phones

 

[GoesStation]

The speaker appears saying that those the people are addicted to [STRIKE]using[/STRIKE] their mobile phones ….

What makes you think that? The text says the doctor had to ask "… patients to get off of their mobile phones". Do those words hold any suggestion of addiction?

Don't read more into a text than what its words say.