Facebook image of Harrogate radiographer gets 13,000 shares

A photo of a radiographer at Harrogate District Hospital, accompanied by a message urging people to follow lockdown rules and get vaccinated, has gone viral.

Dr Jon Sharpe, a consultant musculoskeletal radiologist, posted the simple but powerful image of radiographer Jo Huddart on his Facebook page on Saturday.

Since then it has received 13,000 shares, 12,000 reactions and 1,800 comments.

Annie Garlick took the image of fellow radiographer Jo Huddart on Ms Huddart’s phone.

Dr Sharpe’s post says the NHS faces its toughest fortnight in history and then explains the extraordinary lengths these “unsung heroes” go to daily.

Every patient with covid or suspected covid meets a radiographer for scans so they are on the front line, at significant personal risk. He adds:

“They wear PPE that is hot and uncomfortable for most of their shift. They do this day after day, shift after shift. Twenty four hours a day.

“Some of them have been doing this job for decades. Some of them are fresh out of university. I doubt any of them ever thought radiography would look like this.

“They are unsung heroes and I am immensely proud of each and every one of my colleagues.

“The clapping was nice, the odd free pizza was appreciated and the pictures of rainbows that children drew for us made us smile – but all we ask of you now is this:

“Please stay at home. Please follow the rules and please, please – get vaccinated when you are offered an appointment.”

‘Superb outcome’

Dr Sharpe told the Stray Ferret he only expected the post to be of passing interest to friends but he was pleased it had raised awareness of the value of radiographers. He added:

“If even just one more person elects to receive the vaccine because of this then it will have been a superb outcome.”

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Asked why the post had been shared so many times, he said it was due to a combination of factors:

“Jo is wearing so much PPE that even though I’ve worked with her daily for the last 9 years, she’s not instantly recognisable — the fact that my colleagues are having to go to such lengths just to be able to perform their daily duties with a modicum of safety is immensely sobering.

“The inclusion of the CT scanner, prepped and ready to receive the next patient also increased the impact of the image, minutes after this image was taken another patient would have been lying on the scanner prior to their examination.

“The picture of Jo and the scanner ready for the next patient emphasised the fact that this is not a unique situation, but just part of the daily work of the radiography staff — there will be another patient going on that scanner shortly.

“Maybe if people stayed at home and accepted the vaccine then that patient won’t be them or somebody they care about.”

Harrogate hospital among 10 trusts at full critical care capacity

Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust is one of 10 NHS trusts in England consistently reporting critical care beds at full capacity, according to the latest figures.

NHS data from December 31 until January 10 shows Harrogate District Hospital’s critical care ward is full.

The hospital’s base critical care capacity is seven beds but this can ‘flex’ to 10 and beyond, trust chief executive Steve Russell told the Stray Ferret in November.

It utilised 11 beds on January 6 and January 9 and although the number has fluctuated it has not dropped below eight this year.

The number of critical care beds in Harrogate is nowhere near as high as it is for many hospitals in larger towns and cities.

Nevertheless, the analysis by the BBC names it as one of 10 trusts out of 140 with consistently full critical care beds.

An NHS spokesperson told the Stray Ferret:

“Critical care services in the NHS are under unprecedented pressure, which is why we’ve increased capacity significantly to continue to provide care.

“Hospitals continue to work to increase their capacity to help patients with covid and other conditions but ultimately it is essential the public continues to follow the ‘hands, face, space’ guidance to prevent the spread of coronavirus, reduce the number of people who need hospital care and ultimately save lives.”

The total number of available critical care beds in England on January 10 was 5,503, with 4,632 occupied.

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Harrogate District Hospital reported it had 47 coronavirus patients on January 14.

The increase in coronavirus patients prompted the hospital to announce last week it had decided to postpone some non-emergency surgeries to free up space and staff.

Tim Gold, the chief operating officer at the trust, said:

“Clearly, this past week has seen a very significant increase of people needing inpatient care.

“This is placing a significant strain on services at the trust.

“In response to rising numbers we are increasing the number of beds available for patients with covid on wards and in critical care.

“We will be continuing to provide urgent and cancer care during this time.”

Council calls for free parking for hospital staff

Pressure is mounting for NHS staff to be offered free parking after North Yorkshire County Council wrote to the chief executive of Harrogate District Hospital.

NYCC chairman Jim Clark wrote to Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust (HDFT) to ask it to “actively consider” reinstating free parking for staff.

The hospital had previously allowed staff to park for free between late March and September, in recognition of the challenges they faced in the early months of the pandemic. The lost income was supplemented by the government as part of a national scheme.

Speaking to the Stray Ferret about the letter, which he had also sent to other trusts across the county, Cllr Clark said:

“It’s a cross-party issue with unanimous support and it was right, as chairman of the council, that I sent the letter.

“It shows how much the people of not only Harrogate but of North Yorkshire are very grateful for all the NHS does. To charge them to park is a bit of an anomaly.”

The letter also asked the trust to look at options for sustainable travel to help reduce its carbon footprint. Cllr Clark offered NYCC’s help in introducing schemes which would support staff to use environmentally friendly methods of travel.

It took almost five months for the wording of the letter to be agreed, after first being proposed in July by Cllr Geoff Webber, the leader of the Liberal Democrats on NYCC.

He called for councillors to ask all hospital trusts in North Yorkshire to offer free parking, but an amendment was proposed by Cllr Richard Cooper, who represents Harrogate Central for the Conservatives, to remove references to free parking and instead support and encourage “measures which enable staff to travel to and from work sustainably”.

The final version of the letter, which was drafted through the county council’s scrutiny process, includes both the call for free parking and support for sustainable travel. It received the backing of all councillors in November before it was signed and sent by Cllr Clark this month.

Cllr Webber said:

“Many hospital staff put their lives at risk for the community every working day and to charge them over £50 per month to park on site at the hospital, particularly when we are all discouraged from using public transport, is disgraceful.

“The cancellation of parking charges for staff would be a small gesture to show the gratitude of the management and the community.”

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After reinstating parking charges in September, HDFT told staff in December it would donate the £50.50 per month from each staff member to Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity, to be used for a staff health and wellbeing fund.

However, some staff were unhappy about the charges and asked to opt out of the scheme. One frontline worker, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Stray Ferret:

“It feels like a kick in the teeth after all we’ve been through in 2020. We were busy before Christmas but right now it’s manic and we feel we deserve this money back.”

In response, a spokesperson for the hospital trust said:

“Parking charges were suspended in the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic when regular services were completely cancelled. The Trust made the difficult decision to reintroduce charges when normal services resumed in order to protect the very limited space available, and ensure parking was as stress free as possible for patients using our services.

“We do understand the challenges for staff but we believe it would be unfair for the benefit of free car parking to be limited to those with a car parking pass. This is why we have made the commitment that monies raised from staff car parking will be reinvested into the staff welfare fund. This will be specifically used to benefit colleague health and wellbeing all across the Trust. Where it is invested is being decided by a staff group.”

The Stray Ferret contacted HDFT this week about the letter from NYCC. The trust said it had nothing to add to its previous statement.

Two further covid patient deaths at Harrogate Hospital

Two further patients who tested positive for coronavirus have died at Harrogate District Hospital.

According to NHS England figures, the deaths were reported on January 13. It takes the death toll at the hospital since March up to 119.

Meanwhile, a further 84 coronavirus cases have been recorded in the Harrogate district.

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Figures today from Public Health England show the total number of cases since the start of the pandemic has now increased up to 5,855.

Frontline Harrogate hospital staff ask for car parking refunds

Some frontline staff at Harrogate District Hospital have requested £150 refunds for being asked to pay for car parking during the pandemic.

Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust suspended parking charges for staff and visitors during the first lockdown but reinstated them in September.

The trust then wrote to staff last month saying it had decided to donate staff parking fees to Harrogate Hospital & Community Charity, where they would be put towards a staff health and wellbeing fund.

The monthly parking charge is £50.50, which means staff paid £151.50 to park on site during the last quarter of 2020.

Employees have now been given the choice to opt out of this arrangement or continue contributing to the health and wellbeing fund.

Most have chosen the latter, but a number have opted out and some are seeking refunds for parking charges incurred in the final quarter of 2020.

One frontline worker, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Stray Ferret they felt it was unfair to be charged for parking after such a demanding year, particularly with the risk of covid, or to be pressured into paying into the hospital charity, however worthy the cause. They added:

“It feels like a kick in the teeth after all we’ve been through in 2020. We were busy before Christmas but right now it’s manic and we feel we deserve this money back.”

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The person added £50.50 was a considerable monthly sum for low wage staff, including cleaners and porters, who paid for onsite parking to know their cars were secure when they worked overnight shifts rather than leave them on nearby streets, which can also annoy residents.

In a letter to staff last month, Jonathan Coulter, finance director of the trust, encouraged staff to continue contributing fees to the health and wellbeing fund but added:

“By necessity this needs to be optional for colleagues, and therefore you could simply opt out and park for free, but we would hope the vast majority of colleagues would like to continue this, given the positive impact that the money raised will have for all staff, and the fact that this will be at no cost over and above what you currently pay.”

Mr Coulter told staff last week that at the start of the year 13 of 300 staff the trust had written to had asked to opt out but he was aware more had done so since.

He added the issue would be kept under review.

A Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust spokesman told the Stray Ferret the car parking fees would be “specifically used to benefit colleague health and wellbeing all across the trust” and a staff group would decide where it is paid.

The spokesman declined to say whether staff would be offered refunds or why the trust had changed its parking policy again to offer the opt-out option.

Two coronavirus deaths as infections stay high in Harrogate district

Harrogate District Hospital has recorded a further two coronavirus deaths as cases stay high in the district.

The two deaths happened yesterday and take the hospital up to 113 coronavirus deaths since the start of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the Harrogate district recorded a further 110 daily coronavirus cases today.

The number takes the total number of coronavirus cases since the start of the pandemic to 5,346, according to Public Health England figures.

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Cases have been consistently high across the country since the Christmas break. The Harrogate district has seen rapid growth and the seven-day rate is now 474 people per 100,000.

It does, however, remain below the England average of 603 cases per 100,000.

Harrogate District Hospital is currently treating 24 patients who tested positive for coronavirus.

The number is an increase on the 16 which the trust reported last week.

700 Harrogate hospital staff to be vaccinated this week

Hundreds of hospital staff in Harrogate have had their first doses of the coronavirus vaccine.

On Monday, Harrogate District Hospital began offering the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to its staff after the first batch was delivered.

Seven hundred staff have been booked in this week to be vaccinated and 266 had received the jab after the first two days of the programme.

A total of 820 staff from high risk categories were invited to be inoculated first.

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Speaking after receiving her vaccine on Monday, Lorraine Robinson, assistant team leader of medical records, said:
“It was a necessity to have this vaccination because I have two auto-immune conditions and my husband is classed as vulnerable because he has an auto-immune condition.
“I’ve got elderly parents and a young grandson. I’ve had this to protect myself, my family and the patients we deal with.”

It comes as public health officials in North Yorkshire said they expected the Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine to arrive in the county by the end of the week.

It means more care home residents will be able to access the vaccine as it is easier to transport.

The government has ordered 100 million doses of the vaccine, however just 530,000 were cleared for use earlier this week.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said yesterday the NHS would begin to publish daily figures on the number of vaccinations from next week.

‘Long covid clinic’ opens at Harrogate District Hospital

Harrogate will be one of almost 70 locations in the UK to operate a clinic for people suffering with long-term effects from coronavirus, the NHS announced today.

The long covid clinics will take referrals from GPs for people suffering from a wide range of symptoms, including breathlessness, fatigue, anxiety and depression, after they have recovered from the virus itself.

Hosted by Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, the centre will offer specialist treatment from doctors and nurses as well as physiotherapists and occupational therapists. Physical and psychological assessments will be carried out before patients are directed to appropriate treatment and rehabilitation.

NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens said:

“The NHS is taking practical action to help patients suffering ongoing health issues as a result of coronavirus. Bringing expert clinicians together in these clinics will deliver an integrated approach to support patients access vital rehabilitation, as well as helping develop a greater understanding of long covid and its debilitating symptoms.”

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Research by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) showed one in five people with coronavirus went on to develop long-term symptoms. Around 186,000 people were affected for up to 12 weeks, according to the research.

The Harrogate District Hospital clinic is one of 18 similar operations which have been launched across the North East and Yorkshire. NHS England has provided £10 million of funding for the 69 sites across the country.

A new national covid taskforce has also been launched by the NHS, bringing patients, charities, researchers and clinicians together to lead the response to long covid, producing information and supporting materials for patients and healthcare professionals, and developing a wider understanding of the condition.

Are you suffering with long-term effects after having covid-19? What do you think of the plans for the new clinic? Get in touch to share your views and experiences: contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Harrogate needs mental health crisis team ‘at earliest opportunity’

A mental health crisis team needs to return to Harrogate “at the earliest possible opportunity”, according to health bosses.

Harrogate District Hospital’s Briary Wing, which offered specialist inpatient care for people suffering with mental health problems, closed in April.

Inpatient mental health services transferred to York.

The adult and children crisis teams, which support people with mental health problems who may otherwise need to go to hospital and includes 29 staff, relocated to Ripon after officials were unable to identify alternative accommodation in Harrogate.

Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust, which runs mental health services for the Harrogate district, has conceded the move out of town “cannot be sustained in the long term”.

The quote is contained in a report due before North Yorkshire County Council’s health scrutiny panel this week.

The report also says the trust “fully acknowledged” that the service should be moved back to Harrogate “at the earliest possible opportunity”.

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About 300 people a month use the crisis team for advice, support and assessment.

Naomi Lonergan, TEWV director of operations for North Yorkshire and York told the Stray Ferret: 

“A lot of work was carried out to find new accommodation for the crisis teams in Harrogate. Unfortunately at the time there weren’t suitable premises that could accommodate both teams and allow them to work together in providing interventions.

“As a short term solution we transferred the team to a suitable space at our existing trust premises at The Orchards, Ripon. However work is underway to identify potential sites and explore all possible solutions to accommodate crisis teams to enable them to deliver a service across Harrogate and rural district.

“Whilst the team base is in Ripon, our priority is always to maintain face-to-face contact and see people who need crisis interventions in their homes or as close to home as possible. Most people accessing our crisis services continue to be seen in the Harrogate area.

“We have identified rooms in the Harrogate community bases to enable face-to-face contact, as well as using increased community investment in team members to enable more home visits where needed. Where clinically appropriate we are also offering attend anywhere virtual consultations too.”

North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group, which buys medical services for the county, said the transfer of inpatient beds “released £500,000”, which could be invested in community mental health services.

Have you been affected by this change in mental health services? Get in touch at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Two further covid deaths confirmed at Harrogate Hospital

Two more patients have died at Harrogate District Hospital after being diagnosed with covid-19.

Both deaths occurred on Thursday, December 10, and are confirmed in figures released today by NHS England.

It brings the total number of covid-19 deaths at the hospital to 106 since the pandemic began. The last deaths to be confirmed there were more than a week ago, with one on December 3, two on December 4 and one on December 5

Meanwhile, 17 more people have tested positive for coronavirus in the last 24 hours across the Harrogate district. Today’s figures from Public Health England show the new cases bring the total number diagnosed to 3,822 since the start of the pandemic.

The seven-day average rate of cases for the district has dropped to 90.2 per 100,000 people, from 95.1 yesterday. For North Yorkshire, the number has fallen to 102.4 from 104.5 yesterday. It stands at 148 per 100,000 across Yorkshire and the Humber.

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