To ask what NHS frontline staff think of Breathtaking?

[CloudyYellow]

I have watched all 3 episodes. I worked on the frontline during Covid. I found it very triggering and my fury is back.

I don't think I can watch it.

I was heavily pregnant and starting mat leave at the time. I knew my colleagues were going through that and I felt desperately guilty I wasn't there.

Stuff and nonsense , she never wrote a book during the pandemic . I see what you are trying to do 😂 . She wrote a diary during the pandemic getting her thoughts down on paper to help herself . Bitter?
She has wrote a book of her own experience though , later .

What needs to come out of all this is proper pandemic planning - because it will definitely happen again. No shadow of a doubt.

I can't watch this series, I have only just recovered physically and emotionally. I was a community AHP redeployed into a large acute hospital during the pandemic. I suffered panic attacks, financial loss, ill health and burn out. I left the NHS last year to work privately. I will never go back.

I see the community service I worked for failing to provide safe care due to mismanagement of priorities and resources (lots of money but band 8C strategic manager not up to the job). Many others in my profession have done similar.

It can't all be blamed on government, some NHS managers turned into autocratic bullies during the pandemic expecting autonomous professionals to become cannon fodder without a voice. Professional union was a waste of space. My former trust have been downgraded by CQC for organisation wide bullying, despite multiple whistle blowers and staff surveys to confirm it, CQC has not helped existing staff or patients.

I am content now to provide a high level of care to patients able to afford it. I also offer some patient groups an affordable service well below market rate (cross subsidised by profitable private rates). I don't advertise what I do, I take referrals from HCPs and community groups. This is how I made peace with my decision to leave the NHS.

I don’t need to watch it. I lived it and am still traumatised by it.

So, so much this.

It's beyond incompetence, it was blatant corruption and theft - fuck learning from it, they need to do serious time!

I can’t watch it, feel sick in my stomach just at the idea of being reminded of some of the things I would like to erase from memory. We were one of the many families who said goodbye to a loved one over the telephone after a prolonged ICU stay with no visits and one 5minute update from traumatised staff who were unsure what they were dealing with and if the treatments that they were providing were doing more harm than good. Everyday. We had to manage homeschooling, work (that was COVID related for both DH and I) and grief with 2 young DC who lost a much loved grandparent in the most distant and lonely way that it was almost unreal for any of us until the funeral came (and then only 8 family members able to attend). So thinking about how many people suffered similarly, how hard we worked throughout, the rules we had to abide by, the long term effect on our children’s education (delayed SEN support for one of our DC with very likely lifelong impact for all of us that could have been reduced with early intervention). I just try not to wallow in the past. Best foot forward, act on personal lessons that were learnt, deal with the now, hold on to the highs.

I found it a devastating watch and haven’t been able to view past the first episode.

Sadly, the people who need to see this and take on board the horror of the period (and the fall out that persists in the NHS with waiting lists, staff shortages, lack of funding), are not the people who will watch it.

@LizzieSiddal Remembering seeing something on telly about the VIP Lane and how one established and reliable PPE supplier said to NHS England, I can help! But their offer was rejected.

Couldn't even begin watching it. Don't want to be taken back to the days where DH was reassigned to ITU and came home and cried regularly

I think this is why it's important programmes like this are made as actually I don't think there is any gratitude shown. The whole thing has been swept under the carpet. Of course people want to move on and don't want to keep going over this horrific time but all of those medical staff that lost lives to care for us we don't hear about. There is no recognition. NHS staff are still having to fight tooth and nail for their measly pay rises, it's disgusting. If the government didn't let the NHS down at the time then I have no doubt they have since.

Yeah I totally agree! I've had family reach out to me saying they didn't realise how bad it was. Its one thing hearing about it, but its a whole other thing watching through a very realistic tv show.

As a PP said, hopefully this is our "post office scandal"

Found it really hard to watch .
All the information changes that was true .The crap equipment that was true in some places .None in others
Staff fear was real as was the sense of disbelief about what was happening.
I was privy to really senior decision making which did impact on people .
Did we get in all right absolutely not did we try to with the knowledge and info and guidance we were given hand on heart we did .
I really wish the covid inquiry would focus on processes, decision making and not ruddy what's up messages
I thought the whole reason for it was to ensure the same mistakes weren't made the next time .
I was never prouder to work in the NHS and to be part of all the key workers .

Tbh, I would’ve taken not having to wear hot, sweaty PPE all day, extra hours because so many colleagues were sick/isolating and worrying about what I was taking back to my family than jumping the queue at Tesco with a Domino’s.

It's all on itvx to stream if you want to do that now. I watched it in one go last night. A very hard watch.

I cannot watch, its too stressful

I think healthcare decision making is part of the next module. I’m hoping that will be less problematic.

Rachel Clarke was on GMB talking about the lack of PPE and mental health support

https://x.com/GMB/status/1760221967804764290?s=20

'Not only is the government not prepared for a next pandemic, they're still failing staff now.'

@ITV's new drama 'Breathtaking' is based on the book by palliative care doctor, Rachel Clarke.

It's a harrowing account of the real-life emergencies NHS staff faced in the pandemic.

I worked in the NHS throughout the pandemic, not on a ward but in the community with older people. It was horrific.

I have never had so many people die in such a short space of time. So many people desperately struggling at home in awful situations, putting themselves at risk both physically and mentally, trying to avoid having carers come in or move into care homes or going into hospital because of the fear of covid or of not being allowed to see their loved ones.

I had to try and balance seeing people who really needed to be seen with knowing that the more people I saw the more I was putting them at risk with the shitty PPE we had.

The amount of grief people suffered in those years is unbearable. I'm usually quite good at separating "work" from "home" but I will always carry some of that with me. I'm not sure how anyone could not.

Thanks is that free to air, but I will check and make space for it - but as others said, it will be distressing

I'm a bit surprised I've not heard the morning tv and radio shows talk about it, yet
Thanks

We will try to watch. We were back room, doing everything we could to ensure the medicines used to treat the patients in ICU or receiving end of life care did not run out completely.

Just thinking about what clinical colleagues endured makes me want to cry. Some of you saved the lives of a former colleague, a dear friend, and my mum. Thank you.

Slight side step but for as long as I can remember, my dad won't give to any charity that sends to money abroad because of their corrupt governments that use any money to line the pockets of their cronies! I point out regularly that he's literally describing the U.K.

We've watched two episodes as binge watching would just be too much.
Not frontline staff but DH and I were both repurposed to community support working from home, often 60 hours back to back meetings and calls which was horrible enough. The PPE and other decisions just seemed to be entirely random, but couldn't be questioned. Care workers and paramedics were thrown to the wolves.
It's brought back so much anger and just remembering what a terrible time we've lived through and still are.

I won’t watch it. Too triggering. I’m trying to look forward. Those that should watch it (and be brought to account) won’t watch it so I can’t waste my resources on it

Haven’t watched it. Saw a clip where one of the staff gets admitted and that was horrible to watch.

Admitting a much loved colleague to ITU was the worst point for me. I don’t need to relive it. Especially as I already know how it ends.