Authority braced for ‘challenge of virus’

JUDITH TONNER

NHS Lanarkshire is working at pace to care for patients and maximise services to cope with the pressure the Covid- 19 emergency is placing on the health service.

Acting chief executive Heather Knox spoke of how staff of the health board and both North and South Lanarkshire’s health and social care partnerships are “working tirelessly to tackle the challenge of this virus”.

The health board area had 58 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the Scottish Government update published on Monday afternoon; there had been 499 positive tests and 14 deaths across Scotland at that time.

Officials have announced measures during the past week to assist the response – ranging from suspending visiting times, cancelling planned procedures and non- urgent outpatient appointments, and accelerating the rollout of new technology to allow virtual consultations.

The cancellation of non-urgent outpatient appointments and planned procedures at acute sites across Lanarkshire followed Scottish Government advice to free up hospital capacity during the three- month emergency footing for the NHS.

Visiting has also been suspended to reduce the number of people attending the county’s hospitals and in-patient wards and limit the spread of the disease – with the only “very limited” exceptions being for patients receiving end- of- life care or those accompanying partners during childbirth, following agreement by the senior charge nurse or midwife responsible for the clinical area.

Pregnant women are being asked to attend alone for ultrasounds and antenatal appointments, but have been reassured that one birthing partner is still “very much welcome” during labour.

Susan Friel, the health board’s director of nursing for acute services, said: “We understand the stress this may cause in being unable to visit family members in hospital [and] apologise for taking this decision, but patient care is our top priority and continues to be our focus at all times.”

Judith Park, who is NHS Lanarkshire’s acting director of acute services, added: “The decision to cancel any appointment is not one that we take lightly and I apologise for the impact this will have on patients.

“A sma l l number of appointments will still go ahead as scheduled, prioritised based on clinical need.”

GP surger i e s a c ro s s Lanarkshire are also focusing on urgent cases as they face “increasingly significant capacity challenges”, with the health board saying that “it is not possible for GP practices to continue to provide all core services”.

Patients will instead be offered virtual consultations with medics using computers and smartphones, with secure video- calling technology – known as NHS Lanarkshire Near Me – “rapidly” being scaled up to allow a fast-track rollout to every local surgery.

Morag Hearty, the health board’s technology-enabled care programme manager, said: “This will have a crucial role to play in the current situation [as it] can be used to reduce exposure to coronavirus by enabling patients and clinicians to consult while in isolation.

“It can also help the workforce and enable support to be provided from different locations; and will be used to alleviate pressure by increasing access to healthcare professionals’ services for other issues outwith coronavirus Covid-19.”

Pharmacy teams have also asked patients to help during the pandemic by refraining from requesting repeat prescriptions before they are due.

They are experiencing “extreme demand” and the buildup of queues which prevent social distancing – but emphasise that “there is no shortage of medicines”.

George Lindsay, the health board’s primary care chief pharmacist, said: “Requesting repeat prescriptions before they’re due is an unnecessary added pressure on practice staff and pharmacies, and it’s having an adverse effect on the reliability of the service.

“Patients queuing presents a further infection risk and pharmacists are having to close their doors to manage this, which is completely unprecedented.

“We’ve had cases of older people waiting outside pharmacies in long queues and there is no need for this if normal ordering patterns can be restored.

“We understand patients are worried that they may not be able to pick up their prescription if they are self-isolating – however, there are alternative methods of collection and delivery, which include asking friends and family to help out.

“Together we must all only use services for their core purpose and when they are genuinely required, which will allow us to return to a more normal demand and provide services in a far better way.”

NHS Lanarkshire will also be working jointly with both North and South Lanarkshire councils to deliver health and social care services during the Covid- 19 emergency, operating “whenever possible as a single organisation”.

The three authorities are aiming to run the key services “in a more integrated, but resilient and stable manner”, and are currently drawing up plans for how they will work together.

Health board chief executive Calum Campbell said: “We will be working hard to keep our vital services running, freeing up capacity in our acute hospitals by accelerating discharges to make sure we can treat as many patients as possible, as well as keeping our care homes open with sufficient levels of staffing to run safely.

“The ability to deploy our combined workforce flexibly will enable us to continue to run vital health and social care services, to the benefit of our people and communities, is key throughout this period.

“We will be in a much stronger position to bring together a wider team of people with excellent practical skills through partnership working.”

North Lanarkshire Council chief executive Des Murray said: “The resilience of health and social care services is of paramount importance; that’s why working as closely as possible to keep vital services running is the right thing to do.

“I’m hugely appreciative of the efforts and flexibility of staff now and in the coming weeks and months. Their dedication to serving people in communities will make an enormous difference.”

Dr Alastair Cook, the medical director of North Lanarkshire Health and Social Care Partnership, reiterated the advice on coronavirus symptoms and immediate self-isolation, saying: “If you or anyone in your household has a high temperature or a new and continuous cough – even if it’s mild – everyone in your household must stay at home for 14 days and keep away from others.”

He added: “Do not go to your GP, hospital or pharmacy – go to www.nhsinform.scot to check your symptoms and follow the specialist medical advice.

“Only call NHS 24 on 111, or your GP, if you can’t get online or your symptoms worsen; protect older people and those with existing health conditions by avoiding contact.”

The latest information on Covid- 19 is available at www. nhsinform. scot/ coronavirus, and a free helpline for those who do not have symptoms but are looking for general health advice can be contacted on 0800