Staff brave the snow at St John’s
WHILE for the majority of people, the thick blanket of snow which fell upon Wexford last week resulted in a day in front of the fire, enjoying a ‘snow day’ was simply not an option for frontline staff such as nurses, gardaí and members of the fire service.
In their cases, not making it to work was simply not an option.
At St John’s Community hospital, precautions taken earlier in the week when heavy snow was first forecast paid dividends and staff went above and beyond to ensure things kept ticking over as normal and patients were cared for.
Many of the nursing staff had arranged to stay in The Riverside Park Hotel and in the hospital itself on Thursday night to ensure that they were able to get to work the following morning.
Director of Nursing Beryl McKee said that spirits remained high on Friday evening and staff had really rallied together to weather the storm. The hospital had a total of 114 patients to care for at the height of the storm and she says the staff went above and beyond the call of duty.
‘Some of our staff here stayed in the Riverside, while some stayed here in the hospital,’ she said. ‘The level of goodwill among the staff has been really amazing. They have all been very good and given 110% in these difficult circumstances. We had put plans in place early on and that paid off and for now we’re just trying to keep the spirits up here and make the best of things. Everyone has put in a great effort here though.’