Outbreak in control room after warnings ‘fell on deaf ears’

As we wait, with hope, for a final way out of lockdown, the voluntary sector is getting ready to rise to the challenges that still lay ahead, says Connex Community Support’s operations and development manager Juliet Short

A DEVASTATING Covid-19 outbreak in Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire’s joint fire service control room has affected its staff.

At its peak, the outbreak at the joint base in Ascot Drive, Derby, saw 18 out of 30 staff contract Covid-19 and four further had to self-isolate.

Others were called back from secondments and other areas of the fire service to help fill-in – and some of these staff in turn also contracted the virus. One had to be hospitalised. A member of control room staff, who handle emergency calls, said they believed the outbreak at the end of January had been caused by a lack of ventilation, with no openable windows and the practice of hot-desking, where staff swap desks.

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service says that both Public Health England and the Health and Safety Executive were satisfied with the measures put in place to protect staff.

News of the outbreak comes after a Derbyshire firefighter raised concerns with the Local Democracy Reporting Service about a lack of regular testing and vaccine prioritisation, despite being told to restart “safe and well” visits inside the homes of the county’s most vulnerable residents. The member of control room staff, who we’ll call

Anne Smith to protect her identity, said she and others had been raising concerns about social distancing, testing, ventilation, hot-desking and masks for months, but this seemed to have “fallen on deaf ears”.

She said it was sheer luck that an outbreak had not hit the control room sooner. Ms Smith told said she was among the staff to have contracted the virus, despite doing all she could to remain Covid-free.

She said that staff were encouraged to continue coming into work even if they were symptomatic. Staff are tested twice a week, a process which started in mid-january.

Ms Smith also claims control room staff were told by management to turn off NHS Test and Trace apps on their mobile phones while at work so as to avoid being told to selfisolate if one of their colleagues were to test positive.

TWENTY million vaccinations! This is an astounding achievement for all involved in the coordination and delivery of vaccines and one that we should all applaud.

The vaccination programme and asymptomatic testing regimes will hopefully provide us with a safer passage out of lockdown.

At Connex, we’re still not quite embracing a gung-ho ethos after the past year. As a charity, many of the people we support are particularly vulnerable to Covid-19, so readjusting our operations is not necessarily as simple as looking at either the coronavirus legislation for charities nor the Government’s new “road map”. It is far more nuanced than this.

Inevitably, for some services, the path out of lockdown is easier to navigate than for others.

For example, our care service in the High Peak and patient transport services have presented us with straightforward decisions: it is vital that people receive the personal care they need and equally vital that people get to medical appointments – therefore these operations have continued throughout lockdowns - albeit both services have adopted new practises and additional PPE. On the other hand, for other services such as Home from Hospital, Readycall - and all services allied to mitigating isolation, maintaining independence and preventing hospitalisation – the answers are not clear-cut. There is no doubt that a telephone call, a letter, a gift or a video call is not the same as having a hug or seeing a friendly face in your living room. There is no doubt that loneliness has a negative impact on our health and wellbeing.

Equally, there is no doubt that assessments are more limited over a telephone. Yet, we have continued to welcome new volunteers and to undertake amazing work whilst working remotely: we have kept in regular contact with people; helped with ad-hoc tasks; made Food Bank referrals; talked to housing providers and health care professionals; applied for grants; delivered groceries and prescriptions and more.

We are eager to get back to business as usual but this has to be tempered in this climate.

Different stakeholders will inevitably see the picture quite differently. Ultimately, whilst clients, staff and volunteers haven’t yet had two vaccinations, how do we balance this impossible equation of risk versus benefit?

There will be meetings in the coming week – and frank dialogue between funders, trustees, beneficiaries and other voluntary organisations - to discuss these factors and to remap out our own road allied to these risks and needs.

I am hopeful that we will reach a balanced and reasoned approach.

At this point, the expectation is that we may begin our Walk ’n’ Talk and volunteer doorstep/garden social visits sooner rather than later but that sadly indoor activities, social transport and group activities will resume very much later.

Whatever decisions are made, our staff and volunteers will continue to help however they can to deliver bespoke support to anyone who needs it.

We know that this is the same for many other local charities and groups. Thank you to everyone who has shown support and compassion locally. We are looking forward to reconnecting with you all in the nottoo distant future.

We can be reached on 01335 348600 or via email at dales@ connex.org.uk.

Inevitably, for some services, the path out of lockdown is easier to navigate than for others.