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Covid

NHSers - how are we doing / feeling? Calm before the storm?

356 replies

treebarking · 17/09/2020 18:15

I'm in a low incidence area but even our covid ward has reopened with patients. No one on ITU but starting to see sicker covid patients coming in. Bigger regional hospital has a full unit already. No reduction in general admissions and if anything, they are more complex. Services were slowly getting back to normal, working through waiting lists etc but lags of 6 months for input. Infrastructure slowly going back to normal. Massive staff shortages as loads off with mental health sickness absence. Heating has gone on...hating mask life etc.

Today everyone suddenly realised that we might be going back to March or something similar. All the covid area processes again alongside running an acute service for non covid patients (as everyone won't stay at home this time round). Incorporating covid into the running of the hospital etc. Everyone has been in good spirits but today....really flat. Not sure we've got enough reserves to do it again.

We're therapies btw so go all over the hospital rather than ward based.

How is everyone else doing? Does anyone know what the plan is for the nightingales? 🤷‍♀️

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cheninblanc · 17/09/2020 18:30

Feel flat today too, worried we're back to square one but this time exhausted

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AnyFucker · 17/09/2020 18:32

Flat. Tired. A bit hopeless, tbh.

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OpheliasCrayon · 17/09/2020 18:37

I was in a&e last night. Amazing care. Lovely nurses and drs and staff. I'm glad you're still there even if you feel like crap and dreading what's coming. Thank you 💖

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crosser62 · 17/09/2020 18:39

Dread here.
Flu planning in full swing. Escalation plans back at the forefront.
Just waiting now, it’s coming.
The new masks are extremely uncomfortable, skin on faces breaking down again after just recovering.
Just don’t know if I can face it again even though we are as prepared as we can be.
Dread & fear.

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stairway · 17/09/2020 18:39

It’s going to be a very tough winter, I suspect the flu jab uptake will be less, then there will for flu and covid, and all the regular surgeries will still be going ahead. People will be packing A and E again as they’re no longer scared of covid. Also there will be nursing home patients who won’t be able to go home as they will be covid positive. Plus there will be staffing issues due to illness and lack of childcare. It’s going to be grim, I just hope the public will be sympathetic when it all falls apart. I don’t think there will be any clapping this winter.

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ginsparkles · 17/09/2020 18:41

Not NHS but just wanted to say a big thank you to you all. Thanks

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PrincessMaryaBolkonskaya · 17/09/2020 18:48

Flat and tired. Dreading having to ring patients listed for theatre and cancel them. Because we will have to. There aren’t many Covid patients fortunately. 3 or 4 I think. But the Trust are struggling for beds already. And then I have to get on a busy bus home Envy

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Gazelda · 17/09/2020 18:50

@stairway

It’s going to be a very tough winter, I suspect the flu jab uptake will be less, then there will for flu and covid, and all the regular surgeries will still be going ahead. People will be packing A and E again as they’re no longer scared of covid. Also there will be nursing home patients who won’t be able to go home as they will be covid positive. Plus there will be staffing issues due to illness and lack of childcare. It’s going to be grim, I just hope the public will be sympathetic when it all falls apart. I don’t think there will be any clapping this winter.

I'm so sorry you and the other NHS and Social Care workers are facing this.

Please know that every single person I know will be supporting you, grateful to you and wishing you well.

I wish I could do more. But I promise I'll be getting a flu jab and will be doing everything in my power to make sure my family and extended family use common sense to help keep us infection free and the NHS workers as safe as possible.
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30under · 17/09/2020 18:52

ICU nurse. Dread. One covid patient in the hospital now, she would have come to us but went the palliative route instead.
Just - we know what to expect and it's not going to be fun.

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BeingLonely · 17/09/2020 18:55

Health care assistant. Feeing scared if I’m honest. In Scotland and been told we are on emergency status until March at the latest. Can’t cancel holidays, can’t book leave unless authorised by clinical managers. Already been told the festive period is going to be horrific

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Howslifenow · 17/09/2020 18:57

This message is not reaching the public. They are still not worried about rise in infections saying hospitalization have not increased.

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kateclarke · 17/09/2020 19:00

Another ICU nurse. I also feel dread.

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ReturnfromtheStars · 17/09/2020 19:09

I heard flu jab uptake is more, apart from that I can only send hugs and as a previous poster try to stay healthy.

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Sidge · 17/09/2020 19:12

I’m in primary care. We are so busy. All back to normal, and playing catch up. Now starting flu clinics and trying to vaccinate more patients than ever whilst encompassing social distancing, time spacing and increased demand.

@stairway in my locality we’re seeing the opposite re flu jabs. We are inundated with requests, can’t book them fast enough and people are getting shitty when they’re not eligible and we’re telling them we won’t give it and go to a pharmacy. Not helped by our fabulous government saying 50+ are eligible but no extra vaccines to give to them...

Also the issue of starting the kids nasal flu vaccines, which can cause fever and mild flu like symptoms so loads of worried parents wanting a Covid test because nursery etc won’t take them with a fever despite parents knowing exactly WHY they have a fever 🙄🙄 no common sense being applied by childcare providers.

No Covid tests available so dozens of calls daily asking us for them. We can’t get them, nothing to do with us but we’re the ones having to spend time calling them back to explain because they won’t take the receptionists word for it and want to speak to a clinician. Most of them aren’t even symptomatic.

And so many posts here on Mumsnet saying GP surgeries are doing nothing and why aren’t we doing nonessential routine work that could wait, or doing phone consults instead of face to face? Trust me if you need F2F you will get F2F... (disclaimer I know it’s not the case everywhere but so many sweeping statements start to grind you down after a while).

I’m tired. I’m worried for my own family and myself. And we’ve hardly begun.

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plerty2 · 17/09/2020 19:15

SadSadSad, poor morale, worried, hate not being able to provide my usual service to patients and can't see an end to it

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Obviouslynotallthere · 17/09/2020 19:22

CMH Nurse here. Care homes are shutting their doors again and I'm worried about the virus getting in there again. They had it rough in the first wave.

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pandafunfactory · 17/09/2020 19:26

We're fucked tbh. Can't cancel like last time, no drop off in activity, losing staff hand over fist to isolation, struggling for testing slots and the numbers are climbing. We are also in a lower numbers area btw.....

It's going to be hard. But that's why I'm there. I can do this. My colleagues need me and I won't let them down.

You can forget the nightingales btw, no staff.

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pandafunfactory · 17/09/2020 19:26

The virus is in the care homes I'm afraid

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treebarking · 17/09/2020 19:27

@crosser62

Dread here.
Flu planning in full swing. Escalation plans back at the forefront.
Just waiting now, it’s coming.
The new masks are extremely uncomfortable, skin on faces breaking down again after just recovering.
Just don’t know if I can face it again even though we are as prepared as we can be.
Dread & fear.

I had completely forgot that we'll all need to be fit tested (again) as there will be new stock...hideous.
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70isaLimitNotaTarget · 17/09/2020 19:27

All the additional stresses of winter on top of Covid 19 restrictions and the threat of a 2nd wave/spike .

Our services have been run throughout on a very reduced level and we're only just re-introducing routine clinics which might come to an abrupt halt .

I've ploughed through Lockdown , with all the PPE and restrictions .
Not looking forward to the next six months at all

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treebarking · 17/09/2020 19:29

@stairway

It’s going to be a very tough winter, I suspect the flu jab uptake will be less, then there will for flu and covid, and all the regular surgeries will still be going ahead. People will be packing A and E again as they’re no longer scared of covid. Also there will be nursing home patients who won’t be able to go home as they will be covid positive. Plus there will be staffing issues due to illness and lack of childcare. It’s going to be grim, I just hope the public will be sympathetic when it all falls apart. I don’t think there will be any clapping this winter.

Yes. All this. A&E is teeming with angry people who want covid swabs currently. Security had to come apparently. I don't think there will be rainbows and clapping tbh. Everyone has had enough and are going to get even angrier with us when we can't deliver. I've had to deal with three shitty phone calls today alone about why they haven't got appointments yet.
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treebarking · 17/09/2020 19:30

@PrincessMaryaBolkonskaya

Flat and tired. Dreading having to ring patients listed for theatre and cancel them. Because we will have to. There aren’t many Covid patients fortunately. 3 or 4 I think. But the Trust are struggling for beds already. And then I have to get on a busy bus home Envy

Yes. There just isn't the capacity or infrastructure to have all the normal winter volume and add covid wards and measures in as well. Something will have to give.
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BloodyMiserable · 17/09/2020 19:31

Realised the other day that it was exactly 6 months since lockdown. It feels like an eternity. It was horrendous on a personal level for me. Many people in our team did not pull their weight, did not come in to work. The rest of us are frazzled. I didn't feel like I got a proper break over the summer (annual leave changed/cancelled).

We are just getting in to the swing of the "new normal", having redesigned all our services to be video/phone call-based.

And now it looks like things are going to kick off again.

I don't know where we will be in 6 months time.

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treebarking · 17/09/2020 19:32

@Gazelda thank you.

Thanks to all the non NHSers love. I hope it continues!

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treebarking · 17/09/2020 19:33

@Howslifenow

This message is not reaching the public. They are still not worried about rise in infections saying hospitalization have not increased.

I don't think people want to know tbh. Everyone is tired of this and can't even bare to think about going backwards in any way.
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