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Original poster

Any other NHSers feel like weird Groundhog Day despite life resuming outside?

29 replies

chairfoxlight · 16/08/2021 22:29

My hospital is in dire straits.

  • Opel 4 for nearly 8 weeks
  • all elective surgery has been cancelled for that time
  • COVID ward at capacity and having to send patients to further away hospitals as there are no beds left. No wards left to open / repurpose as a COVID ward. Numbers as high as previous waves.
  • most patients in ED breaching 12-24hrs
  • major breakouts in clean wards all over the hospital
  • all meetings / training / service development cancelled

At work it's normal COVID business,

  • masks everywhere, full PPE, full social distancing / tape / signs everywhere, constant bloody mask fit training.
  • swabbing everyone that moves - we're all in the middle of outbreaks so having surveillance testing all the bloody time.
  • visiting has been reduced again, might be stopped.

I can't get my head round the COVID being almost over outside the doors (not really over but no masks / social distancing / bubbles etc required) but inside, everything is as it was before, nothing has changed. Visitors don't seem to know what's hit them when they walk in. Is this it for NHS life now? Perpetual Groundhog Day of COVID life while everywhere else slowly goes back to normal?

OP posts:
amicissimma · 16/08/2021 22:43

That sounds hard. You seem to be very unfortunate.

Neither of my local trusts have had more than 40 Covid patients in any day this month, nor the couple of trusts where I have friends working.

MakeMeCleanTheHouse · 16/08/2021 22:49

Similar where I am. I don't think many people grasp how close to the wire things were pre pandemic. Throw in a huge backlog and even 40 infectious patients occupying beds and social distancing and we are stuffed

RichardMarxisinnocent · 16/08/2021 22:54

We've been on black alert (highest level) for a couple of weeks, all elective surgery has been cancelled this week, ED is seeing record numbers of patients and has long waits. I think we have about 50 - 60 covid positive patients. Visitors are allowed I think with restrictions. I can't comment on what's happening in detail in clinical areas as am non-clinical, but everyone is in PPE of some sort including my team (most of home are wfh still), and there are limits on how many people can be in each office or meeting room.

lannistunut · 16/08/2021 22:55

Flowers and Brew

I do hear you, I just have no idea what any of us can do about it Sad

Original poster
chairfoxlight · 16/08/2021 22:58

@amicissimma

That sounds hard. You seem to be very unfortunate.

Neither of my local trusts have had more than 40 Covid patients in any day this month, nor the couple of trusts where I have friends working.

We're quite a small hospital for a wide area so it doesn't take many covid patients to overrun the hospital - that's similar numbers to us but nowhere to put them. The ED backlog / Opel 4 it worse for the whole running of the hospital.

It's just the weird disparity between home and work life I find weird. Everyone out of work assumes all is well everywhere as there's no news reports to the contrary and covid is 'nearly over', yet at work it's the total opposite!

OP posts:
Original poster
chairfoxlight · 16/08/2021 22:59

@MakeMeCleanTheHouse

Similar where I am. I don't think many people grasp how close to the wire things were pre pandemic. Throw in a huge backlog and even 40 infectious patients occupying beds and social distancing and we are stuffed
Yes - we've got no room anywhere!
OP posts:
Toddlerteaplease · 16/08/2021 23:06

Yes. The previous pathway we had that worked for surgery has been reorganised. It doesn't work as well, and we all hate it. Morale is terrible, people are leaving. We are all completely sick of trying to police parents visiting. ( ours are supposed to shield) but for long stay patients it's not practical. Only swapping once every 24 hours is really tricky for families with other kids. It's time to at least allow two named people to freely visit. And since staff aren't shielding, then personally it's pointless making the parents.

Toddlerteaplease · 16/08/2021 23:07

It's the first time I've known us be on Opel 4 in 18 months though. We've got 100 Covids compared to 450 At the peak.

AluckyEllie · 16/08/2021 23:09

Yup, all electives are cancelled as one of the icus is shut for covid (numbers not super high but 3/4 full.) The other icu can only take emergency’s really so anything that can be cancelled has been. All those cancer patients, the big vascular cases waiting and waiting and waiting. 12 hour waits in a&e. There’s nothing we can do about it. More nurses retiring than training every year. Everyone is knackered and burnt out.

Hurrah for me though, I’m finally leaving ICU and going completely non-clinical! I’ve realised the environment is getting worse and it’s not worth the stress and agro. 9/5 here I come!

HarveySchlumpfenburger · 16/08/2021 23:23

I don’t think you are alone in that Aluckyellie.

Same here. We’ve declared OPEL4 twice already this summer. Suspect the third time will be this week unless they’ve started discharging a lot of people today. It does seem a bit weird that everyone outside is acting like it’s over.

Original poster
chairfoxlight · 17/08/2021 06:34

It feels like this is our lot in the NHS, Groundhog Day of covid measures while the rest of the country moves on. I can't see a time where masks, PPE, social distancing and general air of panic at the potential shit storm won't go away.

Members of the public have been less that understanding about the impact on the service provision - but then the message they are getting is everything is fine / hospitals not overwhelmed etc.

OP posts:
lannistunut · 17/08/2021 06:38

@Toddlerteaplease

It's the first time I've known us be on Opel 4 in 18 months though. We've got 100 Covids compared to 450 At the peak.
What does 'opal 4' mean, and are you saying it is better or worse than the last 18 months?
lannistunut · 17/08/2021 06:40

Sorry, OPEL4!

CarryOnNurse20 · 17/08/2021 06:50

Our local hospital is managing ok but it’s huge and we are in a covid hotspot so I think we are used to it. It’s exhausting isn’t it OP people don’t realise. I have however found work easier to cope with when we can do things at the weekends, meet friends for a drink etc. Im trying to enjoy the freedoms too so I don’t resent the public while we feel we pick up the pieces. I think it will be like this for a while to be honest. Small hospitals that cover a large area have always been vulnerable to overloading!

Original poster
chairfoxlight · 17/08/2021 06:59

@lannistunut

Sorry, OPEL4!
Black alert / highest levels of demand on the service etc
OP posts:
AfternoonToffee · 17/08/2021 07:38

@amicissimma

That sounds hard. You seem to be very unfortunate.

Neither of my local trusts have had more than 40 Covid patients in any day this month, nor the couple of trusts where I have friends working.

Difficulty is when hospitals are already run on full capacity it takes very little to tip it into crisis levels, especially if they have very high care needs.

Members of the public have been less that understanding about the impact on the service provision - but then the message they are getting is everything is fine / hospitals not overwhelmed etc.

However a lot of these are worried, in pain, fearful etc. Many will have been waiting 18 months plus to be seen whilst their condition is either 'naturally' worsening or the wait combined with other covid restrictions have made things worse. No excuse for abusing staff though.

MyCatDribbles · 17/08/2021 07:43

The hospital I work at is a bog standard DGH in the south east and they currently have 25 covid positive patients as opposed to 220 at the peak
Inside the hospital staff general behave the same as throughout the pandemic. The waiting lists are really big though

Vanda189 · 17/08/2021 08:14

We’ve been OPEL 4 for weeks now, but not due to patients with COVID, more due to social care crisis blocking discharges and indirect effects of COVID (self-isolation impact on staffing) so very different to 2020.

namechangeandNC · 17/08/2021 08:29

I had my covid jab done in a hospital, because of severe allergies. So there were lots of nurses and paramedics there & I had to stay there for a while. I was just reading stuff but I could hear them talking. They were discussing how they were feeling and describing the situation on the wards as some of them had just come from there and were saying they were relieved to be doing this clinic for a bit of a break.

Honestly I thought from the way they were talking they were describing the wave back over Christmas..... Turns out they were talking about NOW.

So where I live OP, I think it is very much like you describe - this was one of the main hospitals in the area.

Formaldeheidi · 17/08/2021 08:32

100% “Groundhog Day” is a phrase used several times a day in our department! I think. We’re close to 40 COVID patients now and we’re a huge hospital but it’s the chronic understaffing and constant pressure with no relief that has done it.

namechangeandNC · 17/08/2021 08:39

I wanted to say thank you though to the medics on here. I have complex life limiting illnesses so I spend a lot of time in hospital - whilst never been on a covid ward I've seen a lot of the fall out from where I've been and I've chatted to the nurses and HCAs if ever they've come in to change beds / personal care and whatnot and have a chat

I'm so grateful honestly. I've always been able to get the care i need throughout this , including some non elective surgeries. I know that any extra patient puts more strain on you all so thank you to all of you. I know just how insanely hard you work.

StarCat2020 · 17/08/2021 08:40

I feel for you and I don't understand why anyone believes that Boris declaring Covid to be over AKA Freedom Day means that everything is back to normal.

CatAlice · 17/08/2021 13:08

I have covid and just come out of hospital. Very high rates of infection where I am. My local hospital is on high alert. I waited 11 hours in a&e for a bed and A&E was heaving with covid, lots of children. Huge staff shortages because of illness and people leaving.
One nurse told me she felt safer all PPE'd in a covid ward than out and about in public.
I could weep for the insanity of ending isolation.

Toddlerteaplease · 17/08/2021 18:24

@lannistunut it basically means we are at capacity. We were almost constantly at Opel 4 pre Covid. However we've now cancelled all paediatric elective surgery again due to the number of children coming in with RSV. Usually this only happens in the winter.

Toddlerteaplease · 17/08/2021 18:27

I've also seen that another large children's hospital is also struggling with RSV.

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