Pulling together to help frontline
THE past few weeks have been some of the toughest ever experienced by many health workers on the Covid-19 frontline in Wales.
The scarcity of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) has been described by some as a national scandal.
Yesterday, the British Medical Association insisted doctors and nurses should not be asked to “put their lives on the line” to save others.
Now a group of doctors are raising funds to help increase the amount of PPE offered to their colleagues.
They have formed a committee at Dar-Ul-Isra Mosque in Cathays, Cardiff, which has already raised more than £11,000.
Phase one of the project allowed them to supply PPE to every GP practice in Cardiff with equipment including reusable respirators, disposable gowns and hair caps.
They now want to provide the Intensive Treatment Units (ITU) at the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport and the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff with eight respirators.
They also want to provide district nursing teams, the palliative care team, GP surgeries in the Vale and the community care team with PPE.
This is phase two of the project and will cost an extra £3,000.
Dr Esma Izzideen, 37, a part-time GP at Llanishen Court Surgery, is a member of the committee.
She said the pandemic has brought massive changes to her and her colleagues’ way of life and she hopes the appeal will show the NHS staff how much they are appreciated.
“Since the Covid-19 pandemic, we’ve had to change and adapt to ensure we keep our patients as safe as possible. For some, this means keeping them at home and we have started more phone and video consultations. We do still bring patients in if we feel they need to be seen in person.
“We observe the same social distancing measures as everyone else.
“The pandemic has brought so many challenges because it is unprecedented, but it has brought people together and I’m so proud to be part of such a proactive team.
“One of the biggest challenges is the contagious nature of the disease and bringing that home to loved ones, especially if they are vulnerable. PPE has always been at the forefront of our talks.
“Despite so many people working hard across the board there is so much more to do. We were made aware in our local mosque people were talking about what they could do to support the community and the NHS.
“We thought it would be great to get PPE to those who need it and members of the community jumped on it. They really wanted to express their gratitude to those protecting them.”
Many NHS workers will feel exhausted and demotivated, but Dr Izzideen believes the community support will enable them to keep going.
“The appeal was launched and we met our target of £8,000 in 48 hours,” she said. “It’s great to see people have so much respect for our NHS staff.
“It’s so important to look after the palliative care teams and especially the ITU team at the Royal Gwent who have been so badly hit. People have dug deep to donate and even kids have donated their pocket money.
“What the appeal has achieved in such little time is incredible.
“The community have given so generously and the volunteers have been working on all the logistics making sure everything works.
“We had someone come forward who has been working day and night to make the packs. People from all walks of life, communities and that strength will hopefully see us emerge stronger from this pandemic.”
Dr Emaad Alauddin, 34, a GP at Cardiff Bay surgery, said: “The lack of PPE has been highly spoken of in the media. We’ve had some from the health board, but it wasn’t enough.
“The initial plan was to support our GPs, but the response was fantastic so we carried it on to support our care home staff and the palliative care team. It’s to protect those who are working hard to try and keep everyone safe.
“It’s been heartwarming to see and it’s dragged our way of working into the 21st century. It shows that the technology we are using now is making things more efficient and we don’t need to go back to the old way.
“In times of adversity people come up with solutions.”
Dr Shahid Akhtar, 37, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at the Royal Gwent Hospital, is a member of the fundraising committee.
He said: “Our shifts, working patterns and core activity have turned completely upside down. We had to look at the way we deliver our practice during this unprecedented time.
“A lot of us have been re-deployed to help with the ITU and our medical
Some of the Personal Protection Equipment which has been donated to every GP surgery across Cardiff. The appeal now aims to boost vital supplies at the region’s hospitals
colleagues to lift the burden off our A&E colleagues.
“Whether it has been minor injuries, we have focused on getting them into clean hospitals to treat them.
“People have still been falling ill, the elderly are still falling and breaking hips, so there is always a need due to trauma that hasn’t stopped. It means we’ve had to ensure these patients are being treated safely and not in danger zones.”
On Friday volunteers from the mosque also provided staff at the City Hospice in Cardiff with PPE.
Liz Andrews, chief executive of the hospice, said: “City Hospice is Cardiff’s local hospice, caring for individuals with life-limiting and terminal illness in their own homes.
“It’s wonderful to see the community come together to support our essential frontline work.”