More than 20,500 children across Edinburgh, the Lothians and Fife will wake up to a Christmas present, thanks to the generosity of thousands of people throughout the region. This year’s Mission Christmas campaign, organised by Radio Forth’s Cash for Kids, has broken new records, with £1.1 million raised in gift and cash donations over the last six weeks. Continue reading Record breaking Mission Christmas helps thousands of local children
To ensure patient safety, the children’s short stay assessment unit at St John’s Hospital in Livingston will not open on the weekends before Christmas and New Year. The decision was taken as a result of ongoing staffing and recruitment issues which mean there are not enough doctors available to cover overnight and weekends, coupled with late notification of clinician unavailability.
Parents are not being asked to do anything differently. If they require health care or advice over the weekends, they should take the normal steps of calling NHS 24 on 111. They will either be directed to an out-of-hours GP or referred on to the most appropriate place.
Children will still be assessed and treated in the Emergency Department and a paediatric consultant will be available on call 24/7. If a child needs to be admitted to hospital, a transfer to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh will be arranged.
Maternity and neonatal services at the hospital are unaffected.
The short stay assessment unit will not open on December 23rd and 24th, however normal service will resume on December 25th, Christmas Day.
The same arrangements will apply the following weekend, with the unit not open on January 30th and 31st, before returning to normal on January 1st, New Year’s Day.
Jacquie Campbell, Chief Officer of Acute Services, NHS Lothian, said: “Despite our best efforts, we have been unable to reliably secure the levels of staffing required on the festive weekends to guarantee a safe service. The safety of our patients must be our top priority and for that reason the unit will not open. This is the safest option for the children of West Lothian and normal service will resume at the start of each week.”
NHS Lothian says it is working closely with the Scottish Ambulance Service, NHS 24 and local GPs to ensure the provision of a safe and reliable service.
Julie Wilson and Amy Livingstone of Edinburgh’s Cheeky Chompers have won a prestigious national award for their ‘inspirational’ business. The women designed and developed an idea for teething babies – and with their product now being sold in major retailers they’re clearly no dummies! Continue reading National award proves Cheeky Chompers pair are no dummies!
Early Years Practitioner- Temporary post
Part-time (24 hours p/w) Please note this post works 42 weeks out of 52 with the fixed holidays predominately following the school holidays.
This post is initially a 6 months contract with a possible extension
The salary below is pro-rated across the year.
Salary – £10,616 (hourly rate £9.02) – Qualified at HNC/SVQ 3 level
Salary – £9436.44 (hourly rate £8.02) – Qualified at NC/SVQ 2 level
The Early Years Practitioner is responsible for providing safe and stimulating care and play provision for children aged 0-5 years.
Application pack: available to download from the ‘News’ section of www.steppingstonesnorthedinburgh.co.uk or call 0131 551 1632.
Closing date: Monday 8th January 2018 with interviews W/B 15th January 2018
Parents of 2-5 year olds across Scotland are being encouraged to take advantage of the free flu vaccine in a bid to protect children from the virus this winter. Continue reading Fighting flu: Parents urged to protect their children with free vaccine
The Royal Hospital for Children and Young People has yet again been delayed till Autumn 2018. The project, which was originally meant to open in the winter 2012, was delayed until Autumn 2017, further delayed to Spring 2018 and is now to expected to open in Autumn 2018. Continue reading Another New Sick Kids opening delay “unacceptable” says Tory MSP
A seasonal safety warning from industry experts NAPIT Continue reading Don’t let your Christmas go up in smoke
Thursday 14 December from 6.45pm
Women in the most ethnically diverse part of Scotland have been enjoying free weekly exercise classes and healthy heart lessons thanks to a locally raised £5,000 Heart Research UK and Subway® Healthy Heart Grant. Continue reading Free exercise classes for women from Scotland’s most ethnically diverse community
The Royal College of Midwives is urging more pregnant women across the Lothians to get their flu vaccine to help protect themselves and their babies this winter. The call comes after statistics highlighted that only half (51%) of those pregnant in the Lothians received their flu vaccine last winter and that flu was the cause of death among one in 11 women who died during, or shortly after, pregnancy. Continue reading Pregnant women urged to get flu vaccine
