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

[chairfoxlight]

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?

It isn't just capacity though is it?

My trust have capacity as we have an old hospital attached we can open up.
Staff though... nope

But that isn't a short term fix.

Yup. My dd aged 11 did a week summer school for September start. We are on holiday this week and she felt bit of. Done lft its positive. She isn't poorly poorly just of and tired and her eyes hurt.

Our children's ward has just expanded into an adult ward. Something has to give in all this. We just have not got enough beds or staff. What is lost is the level of care to people and that hurts staff as much as patients. None of us like to fail people