Army support at KGH and NGH welcomed by staff and patients
The Army has been thanked by Kettering and Northampton general hospitals for the valuable support they have provided for front line staff during the pandemic.
From January 27 until March 5 a total of 36 soldiers from 1st Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment and 21 Signal Regiment worked across the two Trusts.
They have provided a much-appreciated helping hand to hospital staff who have been under significant pressure over the last few months coping with the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
After undertaking appropriate infection control and induction training the soldiers performed non-medical tasks such as helping move patients and equipment between wards and departments, serving food and drinks, and chatting with patients to brighten up their days.
Sarina Vincitore is a Senior Sister in A&E at Kettering General Hospital who has been working alongside the soldiers.
She said: “They have been amazing. A breath of fresh air and a real morale boost for us. They are enthusiastic, helpful, polite, respectful and their support has been enormously appreciated by both patients and staff.”
Matron for Urgent Care at KGH, Louise Hyde, said: “They have been working 7am-7pm and 12 noon to midnight shifts and have been incredible.
“We have had a very positive experience of them across our wards and departments.
“Many of our older patients may have served in the army, or done national service, and that gives them an instant rapport with the soldiers and they have really enjoyed chatting with them.”
Second Lieutenant Ryan Francis, from 1st Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment, worked in a front-line Covid ward, Clifford Ward, at KGH.
Ryan, 23, said: “I have been extremely impressed by the work that hospital staff are doing. They work long hours in protective equipment, support a lot of very ill patients and deal with the impact of bereavement.
“We have been doing our bit to help them and take a bit of pressure from their shoulders, especially during the busiest times.
“It has been really rewarding for us to undertake support tasks like moving patients, changing sheets, cleaning bed spaces and helping with food and drinks.
“Chatting with the patients has been amazing. We seem to have met a lot of older patients, and hospital staff, who have been ex-forces.
“They have often done a lot more service than we have. It has been great for them and for us.”
Private George Balkartat, 27, from 1st Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment, has been working in A&E and across many other wards where support has been requested at KGH.
He said: “We have been helping to take the pressure off staff by doing a lot simple tasks like helping with transferring patients, taking them for x-rays, taking samples to the lab and distributing lateral flow Covid test kits.
“I think staff and patients have been genuinely happy to see us. We have been helping over a few weeks but we are very conscious that staff have been working under pressure for months.
“The patients have been great. I spoke with an elderly lady who has been away from her family. She has really appreciated us spending time chatting with her. We have all learned a lot from supporting the hospital staff.”
Kettering General Hospital’s Chief Operating Officer, Jo Fawcus, said: “The support the Army has provided for us has been very much appreciated and we want to thank all of the individuals, and the service itself, for that.
“The soldiers’ cheerfulness, energy and desire to help has been a great morale boost to both our staff and patients at both hospitals.”
NGH’s Hospital Chief Executive, Debbie Needham, said: “The Army team have been a delight to work with. They are friendly, disciplined, responsible, hard-working and have made a lot of friends in a very short time.
“They have been a real tonic giving a boost to both staff and our patients during this national emergency. I know our teams all want to thank them for everything they have done.”
KGH’s Hospital Chief Executive, Eileen Doyle, said: “They have been fabulous - giving out teas and lunches, talking to patients, playing chess on some of our elderly care wards so they can have some of that interaction with patients who perhaps wouldn't get it because we're so flat out.
"We are really grateful. They have been super and I want to thank them all for their significant contributions over the last few months.”