People across Scotland are being encouraged to be prepared for winter illnesses in a new campaign launched today/on Friday 4th December.
The NHSScotland campaign takes the ‘clap for carers’ idea and turns it around, showing healthcare workers applauding people as they check their prescription, visit their pharmacy for medicines and health advice, and check the self-help guides at nhsinform.scot.
NHS 24’s Medical Director, Dr Laura Ryan said: “It’s always a good idea to prepare for the common winter illnesses, and this year it’s even more important. Services tend to be busier in the winter so anything we can do to keep ourselves and our loved ones healthier is good.
‘No one can predict illness, so it’s a good idea to keep some common remedies at home such as paracetamol and ibuprofen. Knowing the best place to get help if someone does become unwell is also important – there is a service directory on NHS 24’s health information site NHSinform.scot which also has a range of really helpful self-help guides.
‘In the run up to the festive holidays it’s worth checking any repeat prescription you rely on, making sure you order only what you need and in plenty of time.
‘Your local pharmacist can also help with advice about winter health and medicines – all provided in a COVID-safe way! You should continue to stick to the rules for COVID-19 including self -isolation advice and how to access a test if you develop symptoms. All of the up to date information on COVID-19 is on our dedicated pages on NHS Inform.
These are just a few of the ways we can all show we care – for ourselves, each other and our NHS.”
NHS 24 supports the Show You Care, Prepare campaign in partnership with NHSScotland and all Scottish Health Boards.
General advice and information on how to stay healthy this winter can be found at www.nhsinform.scot/winter
An NHS Winter Preparedness Plan outlining steps to ensure a resilient and safe health care system has been published.
With coronavirus (COVID-19) cases continuing to rise, £1.1 billion has already been allocated to NHS Health Boards and Integration Authorities to meet the costs of responding to the pandemic.
An additional £37 million has been announced today to support services cope with the virus, vaccinations and Test and Protect and the delivery of normal winter illnesses and weather. As a result of these continued pressures, NHS Scotland will remain in a state of emergency over winter.
To complement the NHS Winter Preparedness Plan, a comprehensive Adult Social Care Winter plan will be published in early November. This will focus on delivering maximum protection for people who use social care support in residential and community settings and in their own homes, and for those who provide that care, including unpaid carers.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “Every effort must be made to prepare the NHS for the pressures it will face in the coming months, including normal winter illnesses, the impact of any severe weather, a significant resurgence of COVID-19 and a potential no-deal Brexit.
“Due to the continued dedication of health and social care staff, and support from the public, NHS Scotland has not been overwhelmed at any point during the pandemic. Our over-riding priority is to ensure the this continues to be the case, not only to save lives and treat COVID-19 patients but to make sure we can continue to deliver healthcare to those who need it.
“I am absolutely determined that we will do everything in our power to be ready for these challenges. We have learnt a lot from the first wave of the pandemic and we are better prepared. We must also recognise that we cannot respond successfully to any of these challenges, if we do not work to support the health, wellbeing and resilience of our staff, of whom we have asked so much already.
“Our Winter Preparedness Plan sets out the range of actions we are taking to support our incredible health and care services and our staff, and outlines how we will work with them to manage this next phase.”
Actions outlined in the plan include:
doubling the number of people protected by the flu vaccine to nearly 2.5 million and preparing to deliver a safe, effective vaccine against COVID-19 as soon as available
increasing testing capacity from around 27,000 to at least 65,000 tests per day by winter, drawing upon both Scottish and UK-wide lab capacities. Three new Regional Testing Hubs will be fully operational by early December, providing an additional 22,000 daily tests
continuing to ensure Health Boards have access to sufficient contact tracers to respond to local surges, with additional national resilience from the National Contact Tracing Centre
the ability to repurpose approximately 3,000 acute beds nationwide for COVID-19 patients; including doubling ICU capacity within one week, trebling it in two weeks and quadrupling to over 700 should circumstances demand, subject to staffing and supplies
investing £20 million to support the redesign of urgent care and ensuring a consistent national framework to unplanned care
continuing to provide care and treatment for both urgent and routine health needs, including treatment for cancer and other life threatening conditions, and where we can, restarting a number of diagnostic and screening services, and elective procedures
investing over £78 million to restore as much elective activity as circumstances allow, supporting over 70,000 outpatient appointments, over 13,800 elective procedures and over 98,000 diagnostic tests
supporting the NHS Golden Jubilee hospital to treat a further 13,000 patients before the end of March 2021
maintaining the NHS Louisa Jordan as a crucial national facility for either COVID-19 or non-COVID patients, building on the 4,000 outpatients who have been seen there since July
supporting key workers in health and social care by ensuring staff ‘hubs’ and rest areas are maintained and establishing a Mental Health Network, backed initially by £5 million of funding
maintaining the COVID-19 Community Pathway with local Community Assessment Centres in every Board area
maintaining the Out of Hours Service in all Board areas for patients who need to be seen urgently and cannot wait for their GP practice to open
The role NHS Scotland Test and Protect plays in containing future coronavirus outbreaks has been highlighted, as new research suggests people know their actions count.
With the vast majority (89 per cent) of people believing it necessary to follow the Scottish Government’s guidelines if the country is to get out of lockdown, NHS Lothian has reminded people of three things they need to do to help suppress the virus as restrictions ease:
1: Self-isolate and book a test immediately if you have coronavirus symptoms: a new, persistent cough, high temperature or loss or change in taste or smell.
2: If the test result is positive, you’ll be contacted by a member of the NHS team and asked to provide them with the names of people you’ve been in close contact with as they may be at risk.
3: If you’re contacted by NHS Scotland to say you’ve been in close contact with someone that has the virus, isolate for 14 days. Following this advice is crucial as it can take 14 days for symptoms to develop, and the virus can be passed on during this time.
The research, released as the nation moves through phase 3 of the route map, shows that the majority of people in Scotland (92 per cent) see the role individuals have in suppressing coronavirus as important.
However, with one in ten (12 per cent) saying they are less likely to follow guidelines if others aren’t following them, NHS Lothian yesterday encouraged people to stick with it over the coming weeks and months to protect themselves, their loved ones and keep their community safe.
Professor Alison McCallum, Director of Public Health, NHS Lothian said: “Test and Protect is key to breaking the chains of coronavirus transmission, protecting the progress we’ve made and helping to save lives.
“If you have symptoms, please self-isolate, get tested and share details of those you’ve come into close contact with. If you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive and are asked to self-isolate by the NHS, it’s essential you follow that advice. Support to self-isolate is there if you need it.
“For this to work, we need everyone’s help. If you have symptoms, we’re asking you to self-isolate, get tested and share details of those you’ve come into close contact with. If you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive and are asked to self-isolate by the NHS, it’s important to follow that advice.
“These three steps, along with following the FACTS guidelines, shows people you care about others, sets a good example, will help keep the virus under control and will allow us to continue to emerge from lockdown.”
People can book a test at nhsinform.scot/test-and-protect or call 0800 028 2816 if they can’t get online.
The website provides information on additional support available. If you need to self-isolate and can’t get the help you need from family, friends or online, you can call the National Assistance Helpline on 0800 111 4000. Local help is there for you behind that national number.
To reduce the risk of catching or spreading coronavirus, or being asked to isolate, remember FACTS – Face coverings, Avoid crowded places, Clean hands and surfaces regularly, Two-metre physical distancing and Self-isolate and book a test immediately if you have coronavirus symptoms.
Two further cases have tested positive for COVID-19 as part of an existing cluster of cases in the Greater Glasgow and Clyde area. Both of these individuals are linked to known contacts of the earlier cases.
This now takes the total to 13 and an Incident Management Team (IMT) are contacting anyone who may be affected.
The cases are linked to the M&D Green pharmacy in John Wood Street, Port Glasgow and Amazon in Gourock. Some of the cases visited the following locations during the period in which they may have been infectious to others: The Botany on Maryhill Road in Glasgow City, and The Queen of the Loch by Marston’s Inn, Lomond Woods Holiday Park and Sweeney’s Cruises in West Dunbartonshire.
We can also confirm that a case has a link to the Sitel call centre in Lanarkshire.
Health and local environmental health staff are working closely with all the businesses to trace any close contacts of the cases, and appropriate advice is being given to these individuals including on self-isolation.
All the businesses continue to operate including the pharmacy where precautions have been taken to keep customers and staff safe.
None of the cases or their contacts who are linked to the pharmacy are currently working there, and infection control measures in the pharmacy have been carefully reviewed. Anyone using the pharmacy or getting their medication from the pharmacy can be reassured that it is safe.
Dr Daniel Carter, Consultant in Public Health Medicine and Chair of the IMT, said: “All those who have tested positive for COVID-19 have been given appropriate advice and are self-isolating.
“We are working with a number of businesses including a local pharmacy to trace any close contacts.”
“We would like to take this opportunity to remind local residents of the importance of continuing with the general measures to minimise the risk of COVID-19 to themselves and to others. These include social distancing, regular handwashing, and being vigilant for symptoms. Anyone with symptoms should immediately self-isolate and seek a test.
“Anyone who needs to do anything over and above these general measures will be contacted by the Test and Protect service and given specific advice.
“We would also ask that anyone who has been in any of these businesses should stay vigilant and alert to any symptoms suggestive of Covid-19. If symptoms arise people should immediately self-isolate and seek a test otherwise they do not need to do anything additional to these general measures unless they are contacted by the Test and Protect service.”
Dr Linda de Caestecker, Director of Public Health, NHSGGC added: “None of the cases are experiencing anything but mild symptoms and to maintain patient confidentiality we are unable to give any further information on the cases.
“Everyone who may have been exposed to these cases is being followed up and given appropriate advice.
“We want to reassure community pharmacies and general practices in the area that no additional precautions are required beyond those already in place to protect patients and staff.
“The pharmacy named continues to provide a valuable service to the community and is following all the correct infection control protocols to ensure customers are safe.”
NHS Pharmacy First Scotland offers expert help in the community.
People will be able to get healthcare advice and support to treat minor illnesses and common conditions in their local community following the launch of a new service.
NHS Pharmacy First Scotland will allow community pharmacies to give people expert help for treating conditions such as sore throats, earache and cold sores, along with common clinical conditions such as Urinary Tract Infections. Pharmacy teams will offer advice, treatment or referral to other healthcare teams if required.
This new service will help people access the right care in the right place, without having to go to their GP practice or local Accident and Emergency Department for non-urgent treatment.
Everyone who is registered with a GP practice in Scotland, or who lives in Scotland, is encouraged to use their local pharmacy when they have a minor illness or common condition. Accident and Emergency Departments remain open for emergency care, with public health measures in place to protect staff and patients.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “During the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic people followed public heath guidance closely and used their local pharmacy for medical advice and help.
“The launch of NHS Pharmacy First Scotland will make sure that people across Scotland can continue to do this. It gives access to the right care in the right place, getting medical support that is closer to home and often with no waiting time or appointments needed.
“While the NHS is there for all of us, we don’t all need to go to accident and emergency. For many of us, it is not the right place for the care we need. NHS Pharmacy First Scotland provides a local service, giving local access to healthcare help for many illnesses.
“In an emergency you should always call 999 or go to your nearest accident and emergency department. By continuing to do what we have been doing throughout this pandemic and accessing the right care in the right place, we continue to help our emergency teams and ensure accident and emergency provides the fastest and often lifesaving care for people when they really need it.”
Chair of Community Pharmacy Scotland Martin Green said: “NHS Pharmacy First Scotland is an exciting service development for everyone.
“It recognises the role that the community pharmacy network can play in helping patients and the wider NHS team by ensuring people get the right care in the right place. Pharmacists, supported by their pharmacy teams, will be able to offer consultations for anyone with minor illnesses and provide the appropriate advice and support.
“We look forward to community pharmacy demonstrating its value with the Scottish public through this service and developing it further in years to come in line with the needs of the public and the NHS.”
Postgraduate Pharmacy Dean at NHS Education for Scotland (NES) Anne Watson said: “NES are delighted to be underpinning this important service development by providing educational support for the community pharmacy teams – using online resources, national webinars and facilitating peer discussion forums with experts within the Boards.
“In addition, we have provided a quick reference guide sent to all community pharmacies and education and training to support common clinical conditions will continue to be a focus as the service expands.”
More information on NHS Pharmacy First Scotland will be available online and on NHS Inform later today – 29 July 2020.
New campaign to help people get the healthcare they need.
People are being asked to continue following the public health guidance issued during the first phase of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic by using their local pharmacy, GP practice, local minor injuries unit or NHS 24 to get advice and help when they need medical care.
A new public information campaign titled ‘Should you go to A&E?’ is being launched to help make sure people continue to get the right care that they need and in the right place.
By continuing to follow public health guidance, people can help ensure Accident and Emergency Departments are ready to quickly treat those who need urgent care from emergency specialists.
The public are asked to continue:
using the NHS inform website in the first instance to access advice on common symptoms, guidance for self-help and where to go if further medical care is needed
using the NHS 24 Mental Health Hub and Breathing Space telephone helpline to access mental health advice and guidance
using NHS 24 and the Out of Hours service when they are too ill to wait for their GP practice to open and provide the clinical advice and help they need
going to their local community pharmacy for expert help in treating minor illnesses such as coughs, earache and cold sores, along with common clinical conditions such as Urinary Tract Infections
using their local minor injuries unit for non-life threatening but painful injuries such as a deep cut, a broken or sprained ankle or a painful burn injury
contacting and using their local GP practice during the day for an appointment or over the phone advice
Accident and Emergency Departments remain open for emergency care, with public health measures in place to protect staff and patients.
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “During this first phase of the pandemic you have followed our guidance closely and when you needed medical care you used your local pharmacy, GP practice, local minor injuries unit or you called NHS 24 for medical and mental health advice and help.
“As we safely and carefully resume NHS Scotland, we need you to continue to do this. We need you to continue to access the right care you need and in the right place.
“While the NHS is there for you, we don’t all need to go to accident and emergency as for many of us, it is not the right place for the care we need. Sometimes self-help may be the quickest way to resolve your health problem and the NHS Inform website provides advice on common symptoms and guidance for self-help.
“Our Clear Your Head website also provides specific advice to support mental health. The campaign we are launching will help ensure you have the information you need to get the care you need, closer to home, and often with no waiting time at all.
“In an emergency you should always call 999 or go to your nearest accident and emergency department. By continuing to do what we have been doing throughout this pandemic, we will continue to help our doctors and nurses, and ensure accident and emergency provides the fastest and often lifesaving care for people when they really need it.”
Vice President of Royal College of Emergency Medicine Scotland Dr David Chung said: “People in Scotland have responded fantastically during the COVID-19 pandemic and they have played an important role in helping to protect NHS Scotland by using their local emergency department in a sensible way.
“We want to make it easier for patients to be seen in a way that keeps everyone safe. This may mean that making one visit rather than several, and ensuring you access the service you really need, rather than the one that happens to be open at that time.
“To help us do that, we would ask you to use NHS advice lines or online resources. Accident and Emergency Departments remain completely open for emergencies as we have throughout the pandemic, and we know patients who need emergency care are not staying away anymore. We have got the balance right but we need people to use emergency services sensibility to prevent new infections arising.”
Pharmacist and Director of Operations for Community Pharmacy Scotland Matt Barclay said: “The vast majority of the public have been understanding with the safety measures put in place and have continued to access the expertise of community pharmacy teams throughout this pandemic.
“It has been a challenge for everyone however the community pharmacy network in Scotland will continue to deliver for the public in any way we can. For any minor illnesses and queries around medicines we would encourage people to think ‘Pharmacy First’ and the pharmacist will do what they can to appropriately support patients through advice, referral if necessary or treatment.
“By doing this we know we can support patients and the wider NHS by playing our part as accessible healthcare professionals, making sure people receive the right care in the right place.”
To help keep everyone safe, the public are being asked to seek medical advice online at NHS inform, call NHS 24, speak with the GP practice or contact their local pharmacy or minor injuries unit who can also help and prescribe treatment.
Anyone with symptoms suggestive of COVID-19 should not attend A&E and must adhere to public health advice. They should contact the NHS to arrange to be tested – either online at NHS Inform, or by calling 0800 028 2816.
The NHS in Scotland failed to meet a maximum 18-week waiting time target for children and young people to receive treatment from mental health services
More than a third are waiting more than 18 weeks for treatment.
All health boards bar the Island health boards failed to meet this target
Danger of ‘perfect storm’ of pent-up demand as lockdown eases overwhelming services
The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition (SCSC), an alliance of leading independent and third sector providers of children’s services, has warned of a “perfect storm” of a mental health crisis coupled with further cuts to some services following the Coronavirus pandemic.
It has urged the Scottish Government to invest significantly in mental health services to address this, warning of an overwhelming demand on services, and urged parents and young people to seek support if they need it.
The call comes as latest waiting time figures from Public Health Scotland, covering the period January to March 2020 (just as the lockdown came into force), show that 4,093 children and young people started treatment at specialist child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in this period.
Of this number under two-thirds (65.1 per cent) received this treatment within the Scottish Government’s 18-week waiting time target from referral to treatment.
This was lower than the previous quarter (66.4 per cent) and significantly lower than the same period last year (73.6 per cent), meaning that just over a third are not being seen within the waiting time target.
All bar the island health boards failed to meet the Scottish Government 18-week waiting time target for children and young people to receive treatment from CAMHS. This target should be delivered for at least 90 per cent of patients.
Individual health boards failing to meet this target are: NHS Borders (89.8 per cent), NHS Fife (76.0 per cent), NHS Ayrshire & Arran (71.4 per cent), NHS Grampian (86.0 per cent), NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde (58.8 per cent), NHS Highland (84.8 per cent), NHS Lanarkshire (57.7 per cent), NHS Lothian (54.6 per cent), NHS Tayside (65.0 per cent), NHS Dumfries & Galloway (87.2 per cent) and NHS Forth Valley (54.2 per cent).
The coalition has warned of a significant demand on services once the lockdown ends as subsequent to these figures there has been a fall in the number of children being referred for specialist help during lockdown, which could have a devastating impact on their mental health.
It warned that the absence of support from teachers and other care professionals could result in early warning signs being missed and lead to a surge in demand for services once the lockdown ends. Self-isolation and social distancing are already having an impact on young people struggling with issues such as anxiety and depression.
A recent report by Young Scot and the Scottish Youth Parliament, called Lockdown Lowdown, found almost two-fifths of young people felt moderately or extremely concerned about their own mental wellbeing: –
Although the coalition welcomes the announcement made by the First Minister (27 February) to invest £3.8 million in developing mental health services to cope with the coronavirus pandemic, it fears that not enough will be done to safeguard the mental health of our vulnerable children.
A spokesperson of the SCSC commented: “These latest waiting time figures highlight that nearly all of Scotland’s health boards are failing to meet the Scottish Government waiting time target for treatment.
“Along with cuts in services this points to a ‘perfect storm’ of a mental health crisis as we come out of lockdown, coupled with further cuts in services.
“While referrals have dropped during lockdown and children are not accessing support, we are storing up immense problems for the future as these same under-pressure services face being overwhelmed due to a greatly increased demand.
“Children are not currently getting access to social services and are not going to school or reporting their experiences. Taking them to see the GP may currently be considered low priority.
“It is important to stress that these services are still available and the Scottish Government must look to support these young people as we come out of lockdown by investing significantly in services.”
NHS Scotland will begin resuming some services that have been suspended, delayed or deferred due to coronavirus (COVID-19), whilst continuing to protect emergency, urgent and maternity care.
‘Re-mobilise, Recover, Re-design, The Framework for NHS Scotland’ sets out how Health Boards will follow national and local clinical advice to safely and gradually prioritise the resumption of some paused services. Health boards will introduce these plans while maintaining COVID-19 capacity and resilience and providing appropriate support for social care.
The Interim Chief Medical Officer and National Clinical Director have provided an initial outline on what services could be prioritised in the next phase of Health Board mobilisation planning.
These include:
cancer services, especially referrals and postponed treatments
expanding treatments for non-cancer urgent inpatients and outpatients
outpatient therapies where delay will increase the risk to patients, such as management of macular degeneration, paediatrics and respiratory services
mental health support
treatment room services such as blood monitoring and B12 injections
Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said: “The coronavirus pandemic has seen an unprecedented response from our NHS and care staff. Our fantastic staff have delivered a massive reorganisation of services in just a matter of weeks. This has ensured that our NHS has not been overwhelmed.
“We are taking an evidence-based, cautious and phased approach to resuming services to ensure the virus continues to be suppressed. While NHS Scotland will remain on an emergency footing, this framework sets out our approach for the next phases as we continue to respond to this pandemic.
“Our approach is not only driven by clinical priorities but also what matters to people’s quality of life like pain clinics, dental treatment and preventative work like cancer screening.”
Interim Chief Medical Officer Dr Gregor Smith said: “Re-mobilise, Recover, Re-design, The Framework for NHS Scotland sets out the steps being taken to safely resume some paused NHS services across Scotland.
“It ensures that the successful steps taken to maintain services during the pandemic are learnt from and built upon. This includes the significant innovations introduced across the NHS to assess patients utilising digital technology.
“The reality is coronavirus is likely to be with us for some time to come, and so many changes made in the coming weeks and months have to be measured against the need to keep the virus under control, continuing to protect the NHS and save lives.
“Our approach will be informed by national and local clinical priorities. We will continue to work with health boards, local authorities, Royal Colleges, professional bodies, unions and other key stakeholders to ensure this is robust and up to date.”
Scottish Conservatives Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, has called for the Scottish Government to publish an NHS Scotland Recovery Plan to restart services disrupted by Covid-19, particularly cancer services.
In preparation for the Covid crisis NHS Scotland went to great lengths to free up capacity and many services were paused.
Elective surgeries were postponed for three months to free up beds and cancer screening programmes for breast, cervical and bowel cancer as well as some cancer operations were also indefinitely halted.
Now cancer charities have issued a plea to the Scottish government to get cancer services up and running again and the Scottish Conservatives have asked for a plan to deal with the backlog in treatment and operations.
In NHS England cancer treatments restarted over two weeks ago.
In addition, this morning ISD Scotland published figures showing that attendances at A&E services have dropped dramatically since the end of march, due to the measures put in place to respond to COVID-19.
The statistics highlight that during the week of the 3 May only 16,107 people were seen at A&E, compared to 27,845 for the same week in 2019, the previous year, a staggering drop of over 40%.
Miles Briggs, Scottish Conservative shadow health secretary said: “It is vital that the Scottish Government brings forward an NHS Recovery Plan – a plan to restart our health service, particularly cancer services and operations, in Scotland.
“Over the last two months, in so many ways, people have selflessly put their own needs on hold.
“The A&E figures show that people have been staying away from the NHS meaning many people may be suffering in silence.
“But further delays will mean more patients could have poorer outcomes.
“It is now over two weeks since NHS England restarted cancer treatments, we could too.
“Thanks to the incredible work from everyone who works in our NHS, our health service has not been overwhelmed during this crisis.
“The Scottish Government must publish a plan to deal with the current backlog of operations and treatments and give everyone access to the healthcare they need before it’s too late.”
Two student nurses have documented their experiences of life on the frontline at Glasgow’s Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley.
It has been just over one month since Stephanie Clark and Rebecca Mason, third year adult nursing students from the University of the West of Scotland (UWS) joined the fight against COVID-19.
Both nurses currently work alongside teams at the RAH to help care for COVID-19 patients and filmed their experience over the course of two weeks.
Rebecca, who was on placement in the orthopaedics department at the beginning of the out break, said: “The way the staff at the RAH initially responded to the outbreak really inspired me to want to opt in and help in any way I could.
“I was in Spain on placement when I heard about coronavirus,” Stephanie added. “But I knew the first thing I wanted to do upon travelling back was opt in to help.”
Stephanie and Rebecca are two of the 1,200 nursing, midwifery and biomedical science students from UWS supporting teams at hospitals and care settings across Scotland during the pandemic.
Both pre-registration student nurses in their final year of study, Stephanie and Rebecca have been based in elderly medicine and COVID-19 wards at the hospital since opting in.
“I’m helping by taking observations, supporting patients who can’t have any visitors just now, and helping clinical practitioners, whilst also learning as much as I possibly can,” Stephanie explained.
Rebecca added: “It can be tough at times, of course. One of my patients deteriorated really quickly and my role was to ensure I was providing comfort to the patient, who didn’t have any relatives with them.
“It can be hard when you’re wearing full PPE – the patients can only see your eyes, but it is so important to show empathy and compassion.”
“The patients are ill and vulnerable, but providing the best support I can to my team and my patients is my number one priority,” Stephanie said.
“The staff have been so supportive and I really feel like I’m starting to find my feet and my role within the team,” Rebecca said. “While it is challenging at times, I feel privileged to be involved and grateful for this opportunity.”
“It’s really important to me to follow the correct infection control policies that have been put in place for all staff at the hospital. While I am a third year student and I do work in the hospital, I’m also a mum and I need to make sure I’m doing what I can to protect my husband and two kids.”
Stephanie added: “We are hugely grateful to the public too, who are staying at home to keep safe and protect the NHS.”
Paul Hendry, NHSGGC’s Lead Nurse for the Emergency Care Medical Specialty Team at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, said: “The contribution made from the student nurse cohort has been a tremendous boost in supporting in the care of patients.
“Joining the frontline at the best of times can be daunting, and to see the skill, professionalism and enthusiasm brought by the students is a testament to their training.
“They work closely with the staff across services, who help support them in the delivery of everything from day-to-day tasks to planning and delivering care in both the COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards.
These are unprecedented times and everyone is working together, adapting to changing circumstances and experiencing new kinds of pressures. Despite this, by working jointly, we’re able to continue delivering effective person centred care throughout and I’m extremely proud of the way the whole team has responded to the pandemic.
“This has been a career defining moment for everyone within healthcare.”
UWS is Scotland’s largest provider of nursing and midwifery education, with all four of its Scottish campuses equipped with state-of-the-art clinical skills simulation facilities, replicating hospital, primary care and domestic environments.
Julie Edgar, Dean of the School of Health and Life Sciences at UWS, said: “It is hard to put into words how proud we are of all of our students who have risen to the challenge and opted in to help our NHS at this vital time.
“It has been fantastic to watch Rebecca and Stephanie’s video diaries of their time based at the Royal Alexandra Hospital.
“Hands-on experience is a key component of all of our programmes, with a large proportion of our pre-registration nursing and midwifery programmes delivered in practice. It is with this in mind that we had absolute confidence our students would be well-prepared to lend an important hand in supporting the NHS and others on the frontline at this time.
“Each and every one of our students should feel incredibly proud of themselves and know that UWS is here to support them every step of the way.”
