Month: March 2022

UK Government sets out next steps for living with COVID

  • New guidance outlines free COVID-19 tests will continue to be available to help protect specific groups once free testing for the general public ends on 1 April
  • Nicola Sturgeon will given an update on Scotland’s position this afternoon
  • Free COVID-19 tests will continue to be available to help protect specific groups including eligible patients and NHS and care staff once the universal testing offer ends on 1 April and next steps for adult social care set out
  • Plans in place to enable rapid testing response should a new health threat emerge, such as a new variant of concern emerge
  • Vaccines and treatments mean we can transition to managing COVID-19 like other respiratory illnesses, with updated guidance published on 1 April

People at risk of serious illness from COVID-19, and eligible for treatments, will continue to get free tests to use if they develop symptoms, along with NHS and adult social care staff and those in other high-risk settings, Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid announced yesterday (Tuesday 29 March).

Free testing for the general public ends on 1 April as part of the Living with Covid plan which last month set out the government’s strategy to live with and manage the virus.

Although COVID-19 infections and hospitalisations have risen in recent weeks, over 55% of those in hospital that have tested positive are not there with COVID-19 as their primary diagnosis.

Free universal testing has come at a significant cost to the taxpayer, with the testing, tracing and isolation budget costing over £15.7 billion in 2021-22. This was necessary due to the severe risk posed by COVID-19 when the population did not have a high level of protection.

Thanks to the success of the vaccination programme and access to antivirals, alongside natural immunity and increased scientific and public understanding about how to manage risk, the population now has much stronger protection against COVID-19 than at any other point in the pandemic.

This is enabling the country to begin to manage the virus like other respiratory infections.

From 1 April, updated guidance will advise people with symptoms of a respiratory infection, including COVID-19, and a high temperature or who feel unwell, to try stay at home and avoid contact with other people, until they feel well enough to resume normal activities and they no longer have a high temperature. Until 1 April individuals should continue to follow the current guidance.

From 1 April, anyone with a positive COVID-19 test result will be advised to try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for five days, which is when they are most infectious.

Advice will be provided for individuals who need to leave their home when they have symptoms or have tested positive, including avoiding close contact with people with a weakened immune system, wearing a face-covering and avoiding crowded places.

Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Sajid Javid said: “Thanks to our plan to tackle Covid we are leading the way in learning to live with the virus. We have made enormous progress but will keep the ability to respond to future threats including potential variants.

“Vaccines remain our best defence and we are now offering spring boosters to the elderly, care home residents and the most vulnerable – please come forward to protect yourself, your family, and your community.”

Under the plans set out today free symptomatic testing will be provided for:

  • Patients in hospital, where a PCR test is required for their care and to provide access to treatments and to support ongoing clinical surveillance for new variants;
  • People who are eligible for community COVID-19 treatments because they are at higher risk of getting seriously ill from COVID-19. People in this group will be contacted directly and sent lateral flow tests to keep at home for use if they have symptoms as well as being told how to reorder tests; and
  • People living or working in some high-risk settings. For example, staff in adult social care services such as homecare organisations and care homes, and residents in care homes and extra care and supported living services, NHS workers and those working and living in hospices, and prisons and places of detention (including immigration removal centres), where infection needs to be identified quickly to minimise outbreaks. People will also be tested before being discharged from hospital into care homes, hospices.

Asymptomatic lateral flow testing will continue from April in some high-risk settings where infection can spread rapidly while prevalence is high.

This includes patient-facing staff in the NHS and NHS-commissioned Independent Healthcare Providers, staff in hospices and adult social care services, such as homecare organisations and care homes, a small number of care home visitors who provide personal care, staff in some prisons and places of detention and in high risk domestic abuse refuges and homelessness settings.

In addition, testing will be provided for residential SEND, care home staff and residents during an outbreak and for care home residents upon admission. This also includes some staff in prisons and immigration removal centres.

Children and young people who are unwell and have a high temperature should stay at home and avoid contact with other people, where they can. They can go back to school, college or childcare when they no longer have a high temperature, and they are well enough to attend.

The internationally recognised Community Infection Survey delivered through the Office for National Statistics will continue to provide a detailed national surveillance capability in the coming year so the government can respond appropriately to emerging developments such as a new variant of concern or changing levels of population infection.

Infections in health and care settings will also be monitored through bespoke studies including the Vivaldi study in residential care homes, the SIREN study in the NHS, and RCGP surveillance in primary care.

The government has retained the ability to enable a rapid testing response should it be needed, such as the emergence of a new variant of concern.

This includes a stockpile of lateral flow tests and the ability to ramp up testing laboratories and delivery channels.

The government’s Therapeutics Taskforce and Antiviral Taskforce will also be merged into a single unit which will continue to focus on securing access to the most promising treatments for COVID-19.

Dame Jenny Harries, Chief Executive of the UK Health Security Agency, said: “As we learn to live with Covid, we are focusing our testing provision on those at higher risk of serious outcomes from the virus, while encouraging people to keep following simple steps to help keep themselves and others safe.

“The pandemic is not over and how the virus will develop over time remains uncertain. Covid still poses a real risk to many of us, particularly with case rates and hospitalisations on the rise. That is why it is sensible to wear a mask in enclosed spaces, keep indoor spaces ventilated and stay away from others if you have any symptoms of a respiratory illness, including Covid.

“Vaccination remains the best way to protect us all from severe disease and hospitalisation due to Covid infection. If you have not yet come forward for your primary or booster I would urge you to do so straight away – the NHS vaccine programme is there to help you and the sooner you are vaccinated the sooner you and your family and friends will be protected.”

Most visitors to adult social care settings, and visitors to the NHS, prisons or places of detention will no longer be required to take a test. More guidance on what people should do when visiting adult social care settings will be published by 1 April.

A number of changes and new guidance is also being confirmed today for adult social care including:

  • From 1 April, those working in adult social care services will also continue to receive free personal protective equipment (PPE). Priority vaccinations and boosters for residents and staff will also continue
  • Updated hospital discharge guidance will be published setting out how all involved in health and social care will work together to ensure smooth discharges from hospital and people receive the right care at the right time in the right place
  • Designated settings will be removed. These were initially set up to provide a period of isolation to COVID-19 positive patients before they move into care homes and before routine point of care testing for COVID-19 was available. Restrictions on staff movement will also be removed
  • Streamlined guidance on infection and prevention control measures will be published to set out long-standing principles on good practice, and support consistency across the adult social care sector. This will include details on future measures for COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses to ensure providers have the latest information on best practice which will include information on admissions, visiting and PPE
  • Updated guidance for adult social care providers and staff to set out the current testing regime across adult social care
  • Outbreak management periods in care homes, which can include visiting restrictions, have been reduced from 14 to 10 days
  • People aged 75 and over, residents in care homes for elderly adults and those who are immunosuppressed are now eligible to receive a Spring booster jab to top up their immunity to COVID-19. Around five million people will be eligible for a Spring booster around six months after their previous dose, and the NHS has contacted over 600,000 people inviting them to book an appointment. Anyone who has not yet had a COVID-19 jab continues to be encouraged to take up the ‘evergreen’ offer.

Through the Health and Social Care Levy, funding will rise by a record £36 billion over the next three years. This is on top of the previous historic long-term settlement for the NHS, which will see NHS funding increase by £33.9 billion by 2023-24, which has been enshrined in law.

The success of the government’s Living with Covid plan, will enable the country to continue to move out of the pandemic while also protecting those at higher risk of serious outcomes from the virus through our testing regime.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon will announce this afternoon whether Scotland’s last remaining Covid regulations will be lifted next week.

The First Minister will update Holyrood on whether the requirement to wear masks in shops and on public transport will end as planned on 4 April.

Covid cases in Scotland remain at an alarmingly high level.

Forth and Inverleith Voluntary Sector Forum meets today

Forth and Inverleith Voluntary Sector Forum will meet meet online today – Wednesday 30th March – at 1.30pm.

Draft notes from the last meeting are attached.

For meeting login details please contact EVOC Community Planning Development Worker Kate Barrett on 0131 555 9100 or email kate.barrett@evoc.org.uk

18.01.22-Forth-Inverleith-VSF-Draft-NotesDownload

Forever Edinburgh marketing campaign secures new funding

“Our Capital’s much-missed buzz is back” – Council leader Cllr. Adam McVey

Forever Edinburgh, the city’s official destination guide, has secured a further £90k from VisitScotland’s Destination and Sector Marketing Fund to continue amplifying promotional activity.

This follows a successful first year of ‘The Story Never Ends’ campaign, which promotes the Capital as the UK’s top city break and shares the unique stories and experiences visitors can discover around every corner.

Delivered jointly by the City of Edinburgh Council, ETAG, VisitScotland and private sector partners, the campaign showcases the attractions, shops, bars, events and restaurants. It was launched as lockdown was easing in April 2021 to target domestic leisure visitors in Scotland and England encouraging people to meet up safely and spend time together once again.

At a local level a new Resident Rewards Edinburgh scheme was also launched in 2021 as part of the campaign. It aims to help residents to re-discover all the city has to offer by benefitting from a high-value reward or discount with a new business every month.

The funding secured from Scotland’s national tourism organisation will support the next phase of campaign activity over summer 2022 and adds to £50k set aside in the City of Edinburgh Council’s budget to develop the Forever Edinburgh website, helping to strengthen the Scottish Capital’s shop window to visitors from across the globe.

An update on the campaign’s ongoing success – which has seen page views increase by 460% year on year – was given to the Council’s Policy and Sustainability Committee this week.

Forever Edinburgh Winter Campaign

Council Leader, Adam McVey said: “The Forever Edinburgh campaign has been a vital piece of partnership working, helping encourage residents back into our city centre after attractions and businesses had dealt with the challenges of COVID restrictions. And its success is clear to see; our Capital’s much-missed buzz is back.

“After a hugely difficult time for our hospitality industry, it has been crucial to safely welcome visitors back into our city centre to support local businesses. Everything we’ve achieved with our City partners with the campaign demonstrates what we can do when we work together, and I’m grateful to everyone who has stepped up to support it.

“While we’ve come far, the impact of the pandemic will be felt for a long time to come so it’s important that we keep up the momentum. This latest funding boost from VisitScotland is hugely welcome and, alongside £50,000 from the Council, will be used to encourage even more residents and visitors to enjoy our beautiful Capital and rediscover all it has to offer this summer.”

Depute Leader Cammy Day said: “Forever Edinburgh has been a true partnership and this additional money from VisitScotland recognises how well the campaign is working. It also demonstrates how important it is that we continue to work together to reinvigorate tourism in the Capital, and we will use the funding to leverage the partnerships we have in place.

“In this next stage of the campaign there will be a focus on our live music scene and all the events lined up to take place over Spring and Summer. The city’s calendar is building back up and there is no shortage of places to see, restaurants and shops to enjoy and arts and culture at every turn.

“As we move forward, I’m sure residents and visitors will continue to lend their support to businesses which were hit hard by the pandemic and feel inspired by the Forever Edinburgh campaign.”

Neil Christison, Regional Director at VisitScotland, said: “Forever Edinburgh has been a fantastic platform for businesses and the tourism industry to engage with residents and visitors during an incredibly challenging time.

“While the return of international visitors will be important for the long-term recovery of the industry, domestic visitors will continue to play a key role in helping businesses get back on their feet.

“The award from the Destination and Sector Marketing Fund will ensure the Forever Edinburgh campaign continues to extend the benefits of tourism to the capital and the surrounding region in a sustainable and responsible way.”

Campaign highlights

‘The Story Never Ends’ featured a series of summer and winter-themed films showcasing Edinburgh’s broad product offer and unique stories, radio advertising, paid media partnerships, new content and itineraries created for the Forever Edinburgh website and new photography of the city. As a result of this activity the website saw page views increase by 460% year on year during campaign period April-February, with users accessing the site saw a rise of 174% compared to the previous year (2020/21).

A consumer PR campaign complemented this activity including travel journalists and social media influencer visits to the city to experience what Edinburgh has to offer first-hand. Global media coverage was secured for a new video promoting dog-friendly Edinburgh, reaching over 1billion readers through media coverage, and a competition prize package with multi award-winning author, Ian Rankin OBE reached nearly 250million readers online.

As a result of this participating businesses have reported a rise in bookings due to the media coverage. Further celebrity endorsement was given by Gail Porter for the city’s spooky stories while there is still more in the pipeline to promote the Capital’s live music scene and sustainability credentials.

https://youtu.be/GUxTzvFM8Z0

The new resident focused initiative, Resident Rewards Edinburgh, was launched in December 2021, with promotion on social media and YouTube as well as a partnership with The List and ForthFM.

Working in partnership with the city’s tourism businesses, residents of Edinburgh are enjoying high-value rewards and discounts with a new business every month. The dedicated Resident Rewards section has become the second most popular page on edinburgh.org since it launched (December-February) with 33,000 page views and 2,279 referral clicks.

This activity was all supported though both Scottish Government’s Regional Recovery Fund and VisitScotland’s Destination and Sector Marketing Fund and Market Readiness Fund money.

Schools: Another £520 million to help close poverty-related attainment gap

Scotland’s headteachers will receive more than half a billion pounds of secured funding over the next four years to help close the attainment gap.

Pupil Equity Funding (PEF) totalling £520 million will be distributed to schools in every council area to help headteachers put in place more support for children and young people.

Edinburgh’s share of PEF is over £7.86 million.

The funding has been confirmed for multiple years to provide more certainty for headteachers and allow for longer-term planning.

Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “Tackling the poverty-related attainment gap and giving every young person the chance to fulfil their full potential remains our priority, and we are investing an increased £1 billion through schools and local authorities over the course of this Parliament to support this ambition.

“Our headteachers and teachers know their pupils best and have told us that our measures are working. We are determined to ensure they are empowered to take the approaches that are right for the children and young people in their schools to help improve attainment.

“Our allocation of more than £520 million of PEF for the next four years will give headteachers the confidence and security they need to plan long term. However, we know schools can’t do this alone, and headteachers should work in partnership with each other, Education Scotland and their local authority, to agree the use of the funding.”

St Francis Primary School headteacher Margot MacAlister said: “Pupil Equity Funding has been key in allowing me to deliver my vision for the community I serve. From the beginning it has provided me with stability in terms of funding posts previously reliant on my devolved budget.

“This has allowed me to build purposeful and trusting working relationships with partners over time that bring a great richness to a child’s learning experience.

“Our nurture programme and now our EXCEL programme has become embed in the culture and ethos of the school and addresses the whole child now and in the future.”

New research identifies need for better support for Service leavers

New research published today calls for more support for Services leavers who face challenges transitioning from military to civilian life.

The report, Understanding ‘Negative Transitioning’ in British Ex-Service Personnel, was conducted by a research team from the Senator George J Mitchell Institute at Queen’s University Belfast led by Professor John Brewer.

The study is one of the largest UK qualitative studies to examine the experiences of veterans who make a negative transition to civilian life.

The researchers explored three measures of negative transitioning in the 323 people they interviewed: homelessness, imprisonment, or mental ill-health. They found that overall, these individuals face the same challenges as other ex-Service personnel, but lack psychological resilience and the economic means to deal with them.

While the majority of Service leavers make a successful transition to civilian life, a minority are known to struggle. The study found the reasons for a negative transition are not limited to operational experiences whilst serving, but due to multiple factors including pre-service experiences, age of enrolment, rank, capability to make decisions, over-institutionalism in the military and the effectiveness of support services.

The study found that negative transitioning particularly affects low rank veterans who are more likely to join the military from difficult or disadvantaged backgrounds, with the career in the military providing an opportunity to improve their outcomes.

However, the research suggests that the Armed Forces can fail to adequately prepare Service leavers which can result in a lack of the emotional, cultural, and social skills needed to ensure that the life they ‘escaped’ from is not the one they return to.

The research also identified several local and regional services which support veterans who have a difficult transition, highlighting the importance of local knowledge, resources, and facilities in improving outcomes for veterans and their families.

The researchers recommend a greater focus on local support provision, whilst calling for more collaboration and cooperation between support providers on a national and regional scale to ensure no Service leaver’s needs are left unmet.

Professor Brewer said: “This is an outstanding study into a very hard-to-access group of veterans, and while they are untypical of the majority of veterans who transition successfully, they attract considerable media and public attention.

“The research addresses their lived experiences in their own words, revealing remarkable testimony of their difficulties in transitioning back to civilian life. The research also captured the views from family members and support providers. No study before has dealt with these issues in such depth and scale.”

Mike Ellicock, Chief Executive of Forces in Mind Trust, said: “We know that most Service leavers transition successfully to civilian life, their lives enriched by their service.

“Forces in Mind Trust exists to improve transition for those who face additional challenges. This research is extremely helpful for us and those who support these individuals, in providing a greater understanding of why Service leavers might experience a negative transition. I would encourage anyone who is interested in this area to read the report in full.

“We acknowledge that significant progress has been made since this research was conducted, with the Office for Veterans’ Affairs and Defence Transition Services becoming operational in that time. However, the research outlines some improvements which can be made to support those who are more likely to experience a negative transition, and we hope to see these taken forward.”

The report can be accessed at the following link:

https://www.fim-trust.org/wp-content/uploads/QUB-Negative-Transition-FINAL.pdf.

Failing landlords to be named and shamed 

Westminster government steps up support for England’s social housing tenants

  • Sub-standard social landlords to be publicly shamed if failing to meet standards
  • Resident Panel will give tenants a voice to raise their complaints at the heart of government
  • Social housing reforms will transform the experiences of residents by tightening regulation and holding landlords to account
  • Measures will help ensure we meet target to half number of non-decent homes by 2030

The UK Government will “name and shame” failing social housing providers as part of major reforms to give residents a stronger voice and drive up standards.

Today’s move means social landlords providing sub-standard housing and services would be publicly called out on the government’s website and across social media channels.

Measures announced today also include a Resident Panel that will allow tenants who live in social housing to be heard directly by government. Around 250 social tenants from across England will be invited to share their experiences and help us ensure our reforms work to drive up standards.

As set out in the Social Housing White Paper, our reforms – due to be delivered through legislation – will transform the experiences of residents, with a major reform of the way in which social landlords are regulated and held to account for the homes and services they deliver.

The Westminster government has already set out a wide range of measures designed to drive up standards and fix a broken complaints system including by strengthening regulation of the sector, improving the Housing Ombudsman Service, and empowering residents to know and exercise their rights.

A package of measures announced today goes even further. It includes:

  • Publicising on social media where landlords have breached the Regulator’s consumer standards or where the Housing Ombudsman has made its most serious finding – severe maladministration – against them.
  • The launch of a Resident Panel, inviting residents to have their say on how to improve the quality of social housing. The Panel will allow residents to scrutinise and influence measures to strengthen the Decent Homes Standard, training and qualification for staff, a new Access to Information Scheme and other planned reforms.
  • Publishing draft clauses to legislation that will reform the regulation of social housing through tougher consumer powers, greater enforcement tools to tackle failing landlords and new responsibilities on social landlords.
  • A new factsheet explaining the role of the Regulator of Social Housing and Housing Ombudsman Service.
  • A single gov.uk page, setting out our progress on implementing the measures in the Social Housing White Paper and further measures being introduced to improve quality of social housing.

Minister for Social Housing Eddies Hughes MP said: “Everyone in this country deserves to live in a safe and decent home. It is unacceptable that anyone should have mould covering their walls, risk slipping on a wet floor or have water dripping from the ceiling.

“We have published draft legislation today to toughen up regulation of social housing landlords. This includes naming and shaming those landlords who fail to meet acceptable living standards and giving tenants a direct channel to raise their concerns with government.

“This package will help to deliver on our commitment in the Levelling Up White Paper to halve the number of non-decent rented homes by 2030.”

The UK Government’s ‘Make Things Right’ campaign helps residents raise complaints if they are unhappy with their landlord’s services and struggling to get problems resolved, with clear advice on how to progress issues to the Housing Ombudsman if necessary.

Adverts have run on digital and social media channels, as well as music streaming sites, to raise awareness of the complaints process and barriers to these being progressed.

Any social housing resident can submit an application to join the Panel, which will close on Friday 29 April.

Scottish Ambulance Service recruits in record numbers

The Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) has continued to increase its staffing and resources at pace this year as part of its Demand and Capacity Programme.

An additional 540 frontline A&E staff have been recruited this financial year – the highest number of staff ever to have joined the Service in a single year.

The new staff include 414 Technicians, 25 Paramedics, 58 Newly Qualified Paramedics, 23 Advanced Practitioners and 20 Ambulance Care Assistants. 192 staff have been recruited into the East, 111 for the North and 237 for the West.

A dedicated recruitment team was implemented to enable SAS to deliver the ambitious recruitment plan this year and to enable the foundations to be built in order to recruit a similar number of staff next year.

This increase in staffing and resources, coupled with alignment of shift patterns to patient demand profiles, aims to improve patient safety and staff welfare.

The programme has been supported by £20m investment from the Scottish Government so far.

This year, additional ambulances have gone live in Edinburgh and Lothian, Greater Glasgow, Tayside, Grampian and Clyde.

SAS has also established Seven new satellite stations, of which six are co-located with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

Scottish Ambulance Service Chief Executive Pauline Howie said: “The last 12 months have been the busiest ever in terms of recruitment for the Service and this is great news for the people of Scotland.

“With the increased demand for our services, it’s vital we introduce extra resources and staffing. This will ensure we continue to deliver the very best patient care by boosting capacity and increasing our resilience in communities across Scotland.

“These new staff will compliment our existing staff who have done an incredible job before and throughout the pandemic.”

Cabinet Secretary Humza Yousaf said: “The Scottish Ambulance Service is the heartbeat of our NHS and staff have worked incredibly hard over the last two years to meet the unprecedented pressure.

“This record recruitment is a demonstration of the action we are taking to help our Health Service at its time of critical need. They will be vital in enhancing the service already provided by dedicated staff.

“The Scottish Government is fully committed to ensuring SAS has the resources and skilled staff in place to continue to deliver a high quality emergency health service.”

Police appeal following assault and robbery in Gilmerton

Police are appealing for information following an assault and robbery in Gilmerton.

A 42-year-old man was walking along the cycle path near to Gilmerton Station Road, around 00.30am on Friday, 25 March, when he was approached by two men, assaulted and had his personal items stolen.

He was taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and released following treatment. 

The suspects are described as being in their mid-twenties, wearing dark clothing and were on mountain bikes. 

Enquiries are ongoing and officers are appealing for anyone with any information which may assist to get in touch.

They are appealing for anyone who was in the area at the time or who saw anyone matching the descriptions to contact them.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact 101 quoting incident 0142 of 25th March, 2022. Alternatively, information can be passed to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Weekly Scottish Emergency Department waiting times are ‘worst on record’

Serious concerns for patient safety

The latest weekly update (w/e 20 March 2022) of Emergency Department activity and waiting time statistics show:

  • There were 25,506 attendances in week ending 20 March 2022
  • Four-hour performance was 66.2%, the lowest on record
  • 8,610 patients were delayed by four hours or more, this is the highest on record and means one third of all patients were waiting for four hours or more in an Emergency Department
  • 2,615 patients were delayed by eight hours or more, this is the highest on record and means more than one in 10 patients were waiting for eight hours or more in an Emergency Department
  • 1,015 patients were delayed by 12 hours or more, this is the highest on record and means one in 25 patients were waiting for 12 hours or more in an Emergency Department

Dr John Thomson, Vice President of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine Scotland, said: “Each week the Urgent and Emergency Care crisis worsens.

“Scotland’s Emergency Care system is failing patients who are coming to harm, and failing staff who are overworked, exhausted, and burned out but are left to cover the widespread shortcomings of the health system. Shortages of beds, shortages of staff, the social care crisis; existing staff do all they can to keep patients safe in these exceptionally challenging circumstances.

“It is an untenable and unsustainable situation. This week saw the highest number of long waits on record yet again. Data show that there is one excess death for every 82 patients delayed for more than six hours.

“This week 2,615 patients were delayed by eight hours or more, from this we can estimate that over 30 patients in this week alone could have come to associated harm or death as a result of their delay to admission.

“The significance of this appalling harm must not go unnoticed and must be met immediately with effective and meaningful action. The Scottish Government must understand the severity and extent of harm befalling our patients, and see that existing staff facing moral injury, going above and beyond, running on goodwill and adrenaline is not reasonable or acceptable.

“This can no longer be the sole answer to the biggest patient safety crisis in Emergency Care for a generation. This must not continue.”

Scots charity ships thousands of donated items to Ukraine crisis

A SCOTTISH charity has shipped two tonnes of donations destined for Poland’s mobile clinics helping those escaping the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. 

Working in partnership with NHS Scotland Global Citizenship, Artmedis and K&N, Kids Operating Room (KidsOR) has secured the transportation of eight pallets worth of goods from its global logistics centre in Dundee to Krakow, Poland where it will be put to good use by the emergency medics caring for the influx of refugees.

KidsOR is a global organisation focused on providing dedicated operating rooms for children’s surgery with bases in Edinburgh and Dundee.

The donation includes medical products, clothing and footwear as well as items specific items to help in a conflict situation, such as air chambers to assist with ventilation.

Dave Tipping, Director of Global Operations at KidsOR heads up the Dundee logistics centre. He said: “As events continue to unfold in Ukraine, donations are playing a vital role in supporting those most impacted by the conflict.

“That’s why a shipment of medical items once destined for Northern Iraq and Syria, but delayed for two years and eventually unable to be processed due to lack of documentation was, has been redirected to Poland.

“Over the next week, the shipment including blankets, clothing, sheets and gloves – all urgently required – will begin its travel and is expected to reach the mobile clinics within the next week.

“Under such terrible circumstances, we are proud to be able to help in a small way and know these items will be life changing for many.”

The seven-strong team at KidsOR’s Dundee warehouse typically facilitates large shipments of medical equipment to completely fit our paediatric operating rooms. Recent shipments have reached Tanzania, Ivory Coast, Democratic Republic of Congo, Senegal, Zambia and Nigeria.

Founded by Garreth and Nicola Wood, it is the only global organisation focused on the single task of providing dedicated operating rooms for children’s surgery. They work in more than 40 countries to provide world-class surgical facilities and won’t stop until every child has equal access to safe surgery.

For more information on KidsOR, please visit: www.KidsOR.org