We're updating our Coronavirus information as it changes, and this week we've added videos and information for Infection Prevention and advice on travel, as well as a list of questions our Occupational Health Department have been asked over the past couple of weeks.

All the up-to-date information is on the intranet - there is a banner on the front page which takes you to the Infection Prevention and Control page.

On Monday our CEO Owen Williams sent a message to colleagues. Read it in full here:

Earlier this week I sent out a short message following feedback from a few colleagues about how they are feeling regarding the Coronavirus.

There is a lot of uncertainty out there, so can I refer you all to check out the most up to date advice from the DHSC and Public Health England guidance on the Trust intranet?  This is updated on a regular – and often daily – basis.

So, if you are in doubt or you’ve heard something that is worrying you, please make sure that you have familiarised yourself with the guidance available as well as refreshing your knowledge about our Trust-wide approach to infection prevention and control. 

If you have any further questions please contact the Occupational Health (OH) department.

Moving on, and I appreciate it can be difficult to think about other things in these circumstances, I would ask you to think about how we might be able to expand aspects of what we already do. For example, every day and night colleagues in the Trust are using secure video/telephone conferencing to plan for bed numbers or to discuss patient care as a part of multidisciplinary team (MDT) work. We have MDT conversations both within the Trust and with other partner Trusts such as Bradford, Leeds as well as with GP colleagues et al.

Increasingly, we are also providing online clinics for patients with chronic conditions which means that they do not have to attend hospital and the number of patients choosing to access our ‘patient portal(s)’ is very high when compared with any similar Trust in England.

So, even though we know that we can improve on consistently having the right digital hardware and software in the hands of colleagues and patients, if you think there is more that we could and should be doing to reduce the risk of infection for our patients, their relatives and our own colleagues, then let’s see what results we can achieve by continuing to work on this together.

I want to thank you for your ongoing commitment towards providing compassionate care for our patients and One Culture of Care to each other.

Owen