If someone asks to volunteer on here then they got to be willing to follow it through; actions speak louder than words. Making excuses that rule themselves out from anything other that sitting in the safety of their homes is being dick.

Fire away👍

Funcy dunc – it appeared to be lothian wide if not Scotland wide. No cases in the building and the masks are not of the type to protect nurses but to prevent us coughing on patients. Its just the surgical mask type

When there are places and people at much higher risk struggling without PPE then it seems crazy to waste it like this.

Quite possibly someone knows more / better than me but it seems more than a little odd

Mooman bang out of order. Wind your neck in

Are you actually washing and dressing and bathing your vulnerable patients?

Well things for my OT friend (now nursing on an out of hospital ward, to help prevent spread of C19) have just got worse.

She is having a melt down. I fear she’s part of the forgotten bit of the nhs. There aren’t many facilities in the place she is working, moral is low, other staff members are not properly filling their quota (they now have to work 7 days a week on a rota system). The few staff she has can’t or won’t or are unable to fulfill the demands, Thus she is working on covering these shifts. She has not had a day off for over 16 days (in fact no holidays last year due to personal life and no money).

I’ve tried to help (which is hard as I’m isolating as much as possible (apart from the one tandem ride a day).

She said she’s having a melt down and I fear for her own health.

This isn’t helped by my own anxieties from seeing people all around not taking this lock down seriously.

Relatives visiting people, being shouted abuse when we’ve asked people to not get too close when we’re either on the tandem, or on the odd time we’ve gone for a walk, seeing people still coughing into their hands, people still giving their friends a hug. I just want to shout to the idiots that they aren’t helping themselves, you wonderful lot in the nhs or my friend.

The modelling suggested our acutes should have been overwhelmed last weekend, but this now seems to be the suggestion for 2-3 weeks down the line. I’ve never seen a hospital as quiet as the one I’m currently in, it really is like the normal world has stopped. I’ve had to come off social media due to the near hysteria and chest pumping of colleagues as I can only assume they must be showing solidarity with colleagues in other areas that are overwhelmed. Boredom, a general anxiety about dying and a weird feeling of anticipation are my usual daily woes.

Theboatman – two weeks ago I was put onto 3×12 hour shifts 7 days a week rota in anticipation .. they cancelled it last Wednesday because lack of work coming through. I have had to visit 4 local hospitals as part of my job, and all but one of those hospitals are quieter than normal; the one that is busy is the one they have moved all the older people ‘bed blocking’ patients too .. what I am seeing is a lot different to what the media are reporting.

Mooman – I’m on a similar deal, was an ANP in community so have been loaned as I do have over 20 years of A&E in. So I’m quite happy, but I was way busier in community. I originally figured we were probably using London’s figures to model and they were ahead. But I’m not seeing any surge in admissions.
What worries me more is how we are really hammering the new discharge timescales even whilst the hospital is over half empty. We are seeing patients who could and should have returned home with dom care going into 24 hour care and beds with therapy. Just seems we are using up all that capacity before we need to rather than getting people home. Equally from being in the community it was the care homes I was most worried for. We don’t seem to be thinking things through as a system.

Yes – things seem to be planned around what the media says is happening in London. The planning of social services resources seems completely out of sorts with whats happening – and the only reason there is not big problems with that is because it has been so quiet the last 3 weeks or so .. there is the usual hospital discharges – just less of them coming through. From what I hear there is more available capacity from care agencies than usual too.
Those of my colleagues working from home and expected to pick up any issues in the community are telling me its even quieter for them; they seem to be taking great pleasure in rubbing my nose in it that I`m still required to go into work whilst they are topping up their tans in their garden.

I need to vent.

Having been moved units ( to one which is “overflow” from the general hospital. No covid on my ward but some on the sister ward) where I am actually being useful. I am struggling. 6 shifts in the new unit now. 2 shifts I have had another nurse who knows the ward. The rest of the time I have been the senior person making all the calls and also supporting newbs.

I am ready to retire and could go any day but it would seem wrong to go right now when I am needed. I am done tho. My feet, back and legs all hurt, my brain is scrambled and my face hurts from the PPE.

I know I am in an easier position than many of my colleagues but I am still reaching breaking point.

I am promising myself I will quit when the crisis is over – but how long will that be? All my holiday plans for the summer are gone and its the prospect of time in the mountains that keeps me going usually but now I do not have that

Perspective? Any ideas to help me cope?

Off for my daily walk now. Thanks folks

If my understanding of what you describe as ‘overflow wards’ is correct then these ‘overflow’ wards seem to be the only wards flat out. My wife has also been working on such a ward since the beginning of all this; they seem to be moving all the older patients from various hospitals to one place to make room at the hospitals they expecting things to kick off at … but as the numerous Tik-Tok videos of NHS staff having time to arrange various dance routines whilst in work demonstrates – they not got as much as usual to do.

TJ, I’m sure you are much valued. With all your experience and compassion, how could you not be?

It’s noticable how the lockdown is affecting people.
Everyone’s a bit snappy, lots of people have relatives in hospital, we have lots of bank staff as a significant proportion of our lot are in quarantine.

I’m getting jumpy, can’t sleep and sudden loud noises scare the shit out of me.

I’ve been helping with end of life care this week.
I used to do this quite a bit in the community but it was usually for people I didn’t know very well. The last week has been with someone I have known for a while and have an excellent relationship with. Along with all the regular tasks, I’m just wiped out.

I can’t talk about it to my wife as it brings back memories of looking after her folks.
So you lot get it again. 😶

Sorry to moan and thanks for listening.

Ta Rusty – seems like we are in similar sort of positions.

All I wanted was a gentle wind down to retirement. Its not what I am getting!

I do feel a bit better for a walk and talk with t’missus

All sounds completely shit, nothing I can say will help, apart from maybe make sure you take a break and a very sincere thank you from everyone.

I retired 3 months ago, then went back part time…

As for the situation, it’s like having sex with a gorilla; you don’t stop until the gorilla’s had enough.

All I wanted was a gentle wind down to retirement. Its not what I am getting!

🙂

At least you won’t be bored.
Take care.

As for the situation, it’s like having sex with a gorilla; you don’t stop until the gorilla’s had enough.

Some of these alternative therapies really are amazing, aren’t they?

Thanks Crikey that made me laugh!

I am already part time – 24 hrs a week

I’m on 22 hours, which has meant me doing 2 nights a week for… I dunno how long, I don’t like nights, I left ITU because I’d had enough… I started to work in Theatre but have been dragged back into ITU until it settles down. I’ve already been taken off to one side by my Theatre boss and told to shout out if I don’t like it anymore; they are acutely aware that a number of er… older folk… are thinking about finishing when it settles down, and that coupled with the lack of leave being taken is going to present an issue later on.

I know it’s stressful but you, like me, have the advantage of considerable experience to draw on and we can hopefully pass that on while on the finishing straight as it were.

Ta

Crikey – you got a PM

I’m sorry for you guys that are blasted to your bins for the NHS, there must be massive regional differences. I’m being turned back to community after my back to back 12 hour shifts in A&E behind the Covid door. Been the most boring couple of weeks I’ve worked in an acute hospital with way less than 50% occupancy which is something I have never seen before. I’m oddly more anxious about going back as I covered care homes that were already being dry bummed by Covid 2 weeks ago, and I can’t imagine that’s going to have got better.