Published on: 25 March 2022

I was delighted to attend two celebrations this week which, after the couple of years we have just experienced, was really great.

Both were connected to the Trust’s response to the pandemic and it won’t surprise you to know that both had been cancelled, rearranged and postponed a number of times before eventually going ahead.

They were arranged by the team at our hospital charity ELHT&Me using two donations given specifically to recognise the critical care unit at Royal Blackburn Teaching Hospital, as well as those redeployed to help the team during the past two years, specifically colleagues in the Theatre and Emergency Departments.

They were held over two nights so that we could continue to staff the unit effectively and also to ensure the events were held as safely as possible for colleagues. The money, an incredible £13,650 in total, was given by two donors who wanted to treat these teams, in particular, to have a night off and kick back after a very difficult and challenging period.

I don’t say this to diminish the contributions of anyone else in any way. There is not a person in the Trust or wider health and social care system who doesn’t deserve a huge thank you for everything achieved during our magnificent response to the pandemic.

But I want to be open and say why these teams were involved and say thank you also to those who paid the bill for these events.

The first donation was made by the Hargreaves family, who gave a massive £7,650 in memory of their parents, who sadly died after being cared for by colleagues in critical care

In their thank you note they said: ''We raised the funds in recognition of the work the staff at RBTH ICU/Critical Care did to care for our mum and dad and the many others throughout the pandemic. 

“We wanted the funds to be split between the staff (to use as they see fit, in order to help their mental state and give them some much-needed light after their year of darkness) as well as perhaps funding a piece of equipment with a plaque on it in mum and dads memory too, which we also think would be nice to help others for years to come. 

“It is really important to us that the staff are recognised with this donation as we know this is what mum and dad would have wanted most of all.''

The second donation came from a local family business which has donated to ELHT&Me a number of times before and sent a cheque for £5,000 in the post to be used to recognise the work delivered by the Critical Care team throughout the pandemic.

Their donation came with a simple thank you and a request for no press or publicity which I will of course respect, but they know who they are and I want to acknowledge them here for their kindness. I am very grateful to them for helping to make these events happen.

It will not have escaped anyone’s attention that it is almost two years to the day that widespread restrictions designed to manage the spread of Covid and its impact on the NHS emerged in the UK.

I don’t want to dwell on the details again and particularly in the wake of two events designed to celebrate everything that was achieved, but if you do want to listen in to some of the stories from the Critical Care team, there’s a podcast here which is well worth a listen. It describes how day by day they were supported by colleagues from right across the organisation to care for as many people as possible.

This puts me in mind of the ongoing and extremely challenging pressures we are experiencing now across the Trust but which always manifest themselves at the ‘front door’ in our urgent care and emergency departments.

I do know, however, that everyone across the Trust is involved, feeling it and working hard to manage the pressures, for example in the Same Day Emergency Care Services, the Medical and Surgical Assessment Units and the wards.

Another great example of that collective effort is the Switchboard, with whom I was fortunate to spend time with this week. I have to say what this team is doing and dealing with every day and every night is just brilliant too. Amongst the many areas they cover you can imagine how many phone calls we receive into the Trust and often from people in distress who are worried and anxious, but the team help everyone in the most professional and empathetic way. I was hugely impressed.

Unfortunately, we have again seen very high numbers of people attending the urgent and emergency departments for care and I know there have been some very long waits to be seen. This is on top of rising Covid infections in our communities and among patients and their families, as well as colleagues of course.

I know we are doing everything possible to help people as quickly and safely as we can, but it is difficult and challenging for staff and patients alike.

On a national NHS call this week Trusts were asked to work across the system to improve A&E, make sure we maintain discharge numbers seven days a week and support ambulance colleagues to handover patients so that they can attend the next call as soon as they possibly can. These are areas I am pleased to say in which we already perform well.

Throughout the pandemic, local people have shown the Trust tremendous support and so now I want to ask for help from our communities again too. Please, consider if you need to attend or whether an alternative service or option might work for you. If you’re not sure, give NHS 111 a try online or on the ‘phone and they can help talk you through symptoms and offer advice about where to go. By working together we can make this better.

I’ll end with a shout out to all our wonderful teams across our hospital and community settings – and those often unseen heroes working behind the scenes. Thank you for everything you are doing and have done, consistently, for such a long time. I know you never stop, not for a minute, and it might feel like people don’t see, appreciate or recognise your contribution and everything you are doing, but let me tell you that they do.

Take care,

Martin