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For #TeamEEAST Last updated: 18 April 2024 at 23:49
Video transcript: Dorothy Hosein video on 10th April
Hello colleagues
On this Friday, 10th April I wanted to just speak to you a little bit today around how we are preparing for this surge - we know it is coming. We’ve been in a kind of a stable, almost, growth period over the last couple of weeks and now we do know from everything that the government is telling us and what we can see in terms of the activity in our area that surge is on its way in the next week or two.
I wanted to just assure you about the amount of activity that we doing here to prepare for that. A lot of work is going on around critical care and how we are going to transfer patients throughout the region because as you know we are that connection between all of the hospitals in the region. We have asked for some support from the military – 60 drivers to support us – and we have the vehicles and we’ve got all the kit and we’ve already begun to see that critical care transfer increase over this last week as really important.
In terms of other things we are doing, we’ve had a fantastic response from our CFRs (community first responders) and our volunteers about how they can help us and we are working through that at the moment. Whether they are PTS drivers, or whether they are supporting us in other ways, that is all being worked through.
The Fire service support, in terms of colleagues joining us from Fire, is also coming into play next week and many of them will be working in the region - so a lot of activity, which is tremendous.
I wanted to also discuss with you and share with you what I hearing from you around your concerns around PPE. Of course, it’s absolutely critical to your safety and for that of patients. Again, I’d like to assure you we have plenty of supplies. Now guidelines do change and in the dynamic situation we are in of this pandemic, of course they are going to change because we are learning more and more around this virus. Please bear with that national guidance changing, it is what it is, we must accept best practice, we must understand from the experts what works and absolutely we must comply with what that is. Again thank you for your comments and of course I love to hear from you and feedback on the situation
There was another fantastic Thank You Thursday yesterday and it’s so wonderful and heart warming that the NHS is going to have this continuous thank you because honestly we can’t say thank you enough to all of you. I think this is probably going to be a big change, even going forward when we are out of this awfulness, where actually people do recognise more and more and will be exhibiting that thank you in a real way so that’s wonderful.
On to another piece of important business, I know it is very sunny out there today and it is going to continue to be sunny this weekend but what we do know and we can see is that social distancing has made a real difference, to blocking the growth and transmission of this virus, so please please adhere to guidance, please do not let up. We are doing very very well, we need to continue to doing very very well. This is about protecting each other and being a real community player and I know you are so that’s tremendous. There will be plenty of time for us to get together hopefully over the summer with our friends and families but for now a very happy Easter and take care of yourself.
Thank you.
Dorothy
Published 10th April 2020