Thread for NHS staff

[LucheroTena]

How prepared do you think your place of work is? I work clinically in large teaching hospital and not at all confident we’re ready. Outside of wards there is very little planning and yet we have massive outpatient services. Elective stuff is being limited now but nowhere near enough capacity will be created. Millions in deficit so we’re operating on skeleton workforce and even when we can recruit no one wants to work here. Dozens of calls to our small team each day from worried patients, it’s taking up so much time to answer them all on top of already manic workload. Loads of staff with symptoms that are concerning but we’re not swabbing them and 111 uninterested unless they’ve travelled. Admin staff gleeful that they might soon be ‘working’ from home when truth is it’s difficult to get them to do much work on site let alone unsupervised. It doesn’t feel as though there is much consideration for clinical staff and now we’ll no doubt also be burdened with doing the jobs of admin. Never been as close to saying stuff it and quitting.

@VEGAS2016 same! We are running low on masks too

@recall- I'm the exact same as you. Current registration and DBS check, ready and able to work, but because I'm self employed with an agency, I've been forgotten. There are 1000's of RN's in the same position. There is no 'sign up' or anywhere to log that we are here! We are far more capable that bringing back retirees!

There are also many overseas trained nurses, working as HCA's in the UK or even in bars, as the registration can be time consuming. These too are a better resource to use than say students who haven't qualified.

Are there any icu nurses here with a unit full yet?
Can I ask about logistics?
Our plan is 1 icu nurse to oversee 3 none icu nurses caring 1:1 with 2 senior coordinators on the floor to manage arrests etc.
We have an open unit, 1 side room.
How have you managed say 8,9,10,15,20 patients with your staff?

@allthegoodusernameshavegone I’m sorry that you are on minimum wage. All our office based admin (London Trust) are band 4-7 and mostly 5s, so are paid the same as ward nursing staff. We have a big underperforming admin workforce. The good ones take up the slack of the many who don’t perform. I’m sorry if that’s painful to hear but it’s the truth where I work. I accept other trusts have great admin and I’m very envious.

All the usual ‘sick notes’ are now on self isolation for 14 days. Some haven’t seen the latest advice which is to come to work but stay in a hotel at night. They are going to have a shock. Some people are horribly transparent. They are mostly senior medical consultants by the way.

I'm a physio and trainee advanced clinical practitioner. Pulled from my community role last week to work in OOH during the day triaging Covid patients on the phone. Very quiet at the moment as they’ve stopped all community screening. Waiting to see how that will all change over the next few days and weeks.

I'm married to the area medical director. He's busy, with multiple calls, video meetings and 100s and 100s of emails.

Currently neither of us at work as I had (what I am assuming) was a cold over the weekend which developed into a new persistent cough on Tuesday. So that’s both of in self-isolation. Otherwise completely well. Could really really do with NHS staff being swabbed right now so we can both get back to work.

I’m an RGN, have been self employed for 15 years working in the private setting. I want to help in the NHS, So I phoned the local hospital and asked to apply to be on their Nurse Bank, and was told there are no vaccines, I even asked about working as a HCA, and she said no, there may be some posts advertised on 2nd April.

That's madness. We've had multiple emails from staff bank saying fine known anyone who wants to join they will streamline the process and get them in. They're also honouring the bank only workers pay if they have to cancel due to self isolation so they dont feel they have to come in. We're trying to cut agency staff as much as possible since they figure agency are most likely to ignore the slednisolation guidance for financial reasons.

One of my managers said that he reckons they're trying to get as robust a plan together as possible and keep staff as happy as they can because mental health will not be on anyones priority list over the coming months so we need to get this right.

I'm a nurse working in the community.
I'm currently on 14 days isolation as both my children have a temperature and persistent cough.
I feel so guilty at your comment OP of all the usual sick notes on self isolation. I'm not normally off and would hate to think anyone thought I was at it.
I wish they would test as if my children don't have CV then my Mum would be able to look after them big as we don't know and my mum is in a vulnerable group and is my Dad then we can't take that chance.
We've been told to prepare to go into wards as this situation progresses. I felt ok with that but now reading how unsupported wards are in terms of PPE I feel more worried.
The cynic in me feels this is all part of Boris and cronies to throw the NHS under the bus and leave us to get on with it.

The cynic in me feels this is all part of Boris and cronies to throw the NHS under the bus and leave us to get on with it

I thought this but the actions so far do appear to be to protect the nhs at all costs. Especially the school closures.

Hi I thought this might be the place to get an informed answer. My mother in law (in her 70s) lives in China and yesterday on a routine visit to hospital was told by a doctor to bin her face mask (a Moldex FFP2 with valve) as although it would protect her, he said that type of mask leads to more infection of others. He then gave her a standard surgical mask.

I don't see the logic in this, unless he was referring to if she actually had Covid then maybe exhalation/coughing via the FFP2 valve might result in more dispersion than from a totally unsealed surgical mask?

I feel so guilty at your comment OP of all the usual sick notes on self isolation. I'm not normally off and would hate to think anyone thought I was at it

I'm exactly the same I mean what are we supposed to do? I was very unwell with flu before Christmas (I was in hospital at one point) so was signed off for 3 weeks in total - suppose that is what my manager and everyone at work is thinking.

If a test was made available I would know and get back to work, but its not so ....

Completely @Atla.
My son has had a high temp for going on 5 days now. On Monday he was up at 39.5 and that was wi tv paracetamol.
My DD started yesterday.
It's definitely not just a cold but also can't risk my elderly, vulnerable parents looking after them.
The whole situation is horrible.

Are frontline staff being tested??

My next placement after next week is A&E, I have symptoms.

I want to get the test, if I test positive then I can do the placement (thank you antibodies!!)
But if negative - or not test - then I won't be able to do my placement because I look after a child with a chronic lung condition.

How do I get tested?????

I think if retired or nurses from private sector are able to help maybe try nursing agencies? They place in all sorts of settings that would make a difference

At the moment we arent being tested unless unwell enough to be admitted to hospital - i guess this may change...

Same as last week then.

Dang

"I don't know if this is a joke but we've been told if someone in our family is symptomatic they're gna book us a local hotel so we can still keep coming to work. Are they high?!"

Its official NHS policy (not just Manchester and Chelsea)

"At the moment we arent being tested unless unwell enough to be admitted to hospital - i guess this may change..."
Wife is getting a test today, she simply asked for it.

"I don't see the logic in this, unless he was referring to if she actually had Covid then maybe exhalation/coughing via the FFP2 valve might result in more dispersion than from a totally unsealed surgical mask?"

Surgical masks provide better protection for those around because it filters when you breath out. Valved masks filter in and have no filter out - pointless and dangerous when you are infected.

Its official NHS policy (not just Manchester and Chelsea)

Do you have a link to confirm this? Because I cannot find anything that states this.

I have definitely asked for a test and been refused - told by occ health and GP only testing being done is if admitted to hospital or potentially if still unwell after 7 day isolation. Not in England though.

Atla

Chief medical officer has just said that testing NHS staff needs to be a priority so that those that are in self isolation could potentially return to work earlier if it turns out it's just a bog standard cold. I guess it's all about capacity and availability of the tests. I know our infection prevention team are asking for volunteers to be ready to drive out to staff to swab them if it becomes available in the future.

@Ephe17 "A massive problem in the NHS is no one will make a bloody decision."

This. This is the massive frustration. We're facing a terrible situation but we could face it better if someone would just put their head above the parapet. Everyone is too scared to make the wrong choice, as though they're going to get called out on it. There is nobody to call you out. Normal rules do not apply. I'm sitting in horror watching management worry about abiding by current policy. It's going to be too late.

I'm hospital pharmacy with a staff nurse partner. Nobody in pharmacy can make a decision. We're getting sent to wards as normal when realistically we could work from the department until we see how this pans out. Why expose more people? We have staff who are pregnant, T1 diabetic, in remission from cancer. My manager has come back from a week's leave and not even caught up on current advice. Says he'll read it after work. Too much delaying.

I'm terrified for my partner. He's fine for now but once we start getting an influx of patients it'll be hell.

Thanks Peter.

Hi, nurse manager in national 111 service. We are currently being hammered with approx 2hr wait to get into the service.Too many Covid 19 callers who have been told by their employers to call us despite being told to call us only for worsening symtoms....and no, we dont issue fit notes !! The abuse we recieve is breathtaking, meanwhile palliative care patients,surgical emergencies etc cant get through for the care they urgently need.