In all, over 16,000 doses were administered.. in such a short space of time over four months
We spoke to Stephen Kinghorn, Unit Manager in Pre-Operative Assessment and Teresa Aspinall, Staff Nurse in Pre-Operative Assessment about their redeployment to the vaccination hub at Whipps Cross.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you were doing before you were redeployed:
Stephen: Hello my name is Stephen and my usual role is working as a charge nurse in the pre-assessment unit at Whipps Cross. I’ve been at Whipps Cross for 10 years and I started here as a newly qualified nurse. I worked my way up and I’m now the unit manager for pre-assessment.
Teresa: I’m a staff nurse currently in pre-assessment. I’ve had a long history working for the NHS and I came to Whipps Cross three years ago.
Stephen: Primarily our day to day role involves assessing patients before they have surgery. We make sure they are physically, socially and emotionally prepared for elective surgery, fundamentally to ensure patients receive a safe anaesthetic also a big part of our role is in pre habilitation ensuring patients are optimised and in their best health for surgery and beyond, we also liaise with the wider surgical team, ward staff, and anaesthetic team to ensure patients journey through surgery goes as smooth as possible.
Describe what a usual day in your vaccine hub role looks like:
Teresa: I’ve spent approximately 10 weeks here and it’s been an absolute privilege and a pleasure to be a part of this team. The clinical nurse lead, pharmacist, admin and support staff were pivotal in ensuring systems were in place to facilitate the smooth flow of patients through the unit. The role of the vaccinators was to administer the vaccine ensuring safety and safe practice was adhered to. In all, over 16,000 doses were administered, which was a challenge for such a small unit and in such a short space of time over four months. The pharmacist who was on site throughout offered support and advice regarding individual queries. The day commenced with a briefing for all team members at 8am to update on new directives and advice, or changes to be implemented. Although we were very busy there was a terrific upbeat atmosphere which made it a pleasure being part of the team. We had much positive feedback from our patients which was a reflection of the meticulous organisation that happened behind the scenes.
Stephen: I was here for around half the time that Teresa was, as I was initially redeployed to help in the orthopaedic wards, so I was here for about three or four weeks. It was very positive as Teresa has said and it was a good experience. It was great seeing the positive reaction when staff attended for vaccine. We had lots of uptake and it was non-stop all day. It was nice to see staff who had come from Covid areas like intensive care, having seen the worst of the pandemic, now seeing this huge step towards normality. Our day to day role in the vaccine clinic involved a team briefing in the morning, where we were given the latest information and day to day news, we then started the vaccination clinic, where you would firstly go through a consent form, give reassurances, and explanation of the vaccine, allowing questions and answers, administrating the vaccine, and then escorting the member of staff to the post vaccine recovery area for 15 mins observation.
What have some of the challenges been?
Stephen: In the beginning, guidelines were changing from the government especially around 2nd doses so we had to give different guidance so that was challenging, and guidance changed around allergies and the vaccine. Staff responded really well though and we didn’t have many issues.
Teresa: We also had the usual issues that come with vaccinations such as needle phobia which a few of our patients had, but they were invariably reassured and all successfully had their vaccine and were happy to come back for the second. That was a good outcome.
Stephen: We had no needle phobic patients who didn’t have the vaccine as we were able to reassure them all, so it was all very positive.
What’s your favourite thing about your job?
Teresa: I absolutely loved meeting members of staff whom I knew by name and hadn’t had the opportunity to meet whilst working in my own department, so that was very interesting and helpful professionally. I’ve made new contacts and I’ve found that exciting and fulfilling. . It was also a positive step at a very negative time. People were worried and anxious about Covid-19 and the opening of the vaccination hub gave people hope. Several people cried when they had their vaccine, such was their relief when receiving it.
Stephen: In my usual job my favourite thing is being part of the elective surgery journey for a patient, and providing a welcoming atmosphere. The first initial impressions we give can really help to allay a patient’s fears. In the vaccine hub it was great providing hope and being part of the idea that we can get back to some form of normality. It was brilliant to be part of that journey.
What advice would you give to people who are still unsure about getting the vaccine?
Stephen: I would say just do it! We all need to be vaccinated. Read the literature if you’re concerned as it does allay your fears, but I think people just need to go ahead and have the vaccine. If you’re a member of staff who is concerned, discuss it with your line manager they can give you further advice, also have a look on we share there’s lots of good information, so you can make an informed decision.
Teresa: Just look at the evidence, the pandemic is on the wane since people have had the vaccine and that speaks for itself. The vast majority of people have no problems whatsoever and it’s very important that we’re all protected in order to get back to normality.