Coronavirus staff guidance University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust

Staff attendance

Information about when and how to self-isolate, including the option of taking up NHS-reimbursed hotel accommodation if a member of your household becomes symptomatic, is available here:

• Self-isolation, leave and other FAQs

Accommodation bookings can be made here:

• Accommodation bookings

New senior site-based roles established

In response to COVID-19, four site-based senior based senior responsible clinicians (SRCs) and site-based associate directors of nursing (ADNs) have been identified.

The SRCs will lead the organisation and delivery of inpatient medical care outside of the ICU and initial assessment and triage.

Seven-day consultant-led review

It has been decided that we will need seven-day-a-week consultant-led review, early discharge and optimised care pathways, including clear communication and documentation of any ceilings of care, as well as liaison with ICU colleagues for controlled escalation of treatment.

In order to support the anticipated scale of care delivery required, we will identify clinicians who are not currently involved in the provision of general medical care, whose usual activity will be curtailed during the COVID-19 outbreak. They will be asked to support the care of patients with COVID-19 in different ways by the SRCs. Kevin Bolger is leading the organisation of this redeployment with support from Mr Richard Steyn.

Refresher training for clinical staff

To meet anticipated demand, refresher training will be provided for clinical staff involved in supporting inpatient management. Prof Jamie Coleman and Dr Nandan Gautam will lead on the provision of education and training to medical staff, so that they can support the provision of care. They will be supported by the Education Directorate with leadership from Tim Jones and Louise Banks.

We will ensure that there is significant specialist support and clear lines of communication available for those who will need to extend their practice significantly beyond that which they are used to. You will receive unalloyed support from the Trust in meeting demands that are unprecedented in our lifetime.

Prof Simon Ball, Medical Director, extends his thanks these individuals for their support and every one of you in the hard work we are already undertaking.

Help us manage scrub suits

As you can imagine, there is a high demand for scrub suits across the NHS currently. In order to help ensure no area of the Trust, or other NHS facility, is unable to receive any scrub suits when needed we ask that you:

• do not go home in scrub suits
• do not over-order from your on-site linen rooms
• do not dispose of scrub suits using the general or clinical waste streams
• follow applicable bagging procedures for soiled linen
• follow the COVID-19 return policy for scrub suits

Reminder: patient visiting to be suspended from today

Visits from all friends and relatives of patients will be suspended on all our hospital sites from 20:00 today (Wednesday 18 March 2020), except in the following circumstances:

• Parents or guardians visiting their children in hospital
• Parents or guardians accompanying children to any clinically necessary consultations that may still be taking place
• Birthing partners of women in labour
• Visitors to patients in a critical condition who may be at the end of their life – in these difficult and upsetting circumstances, the ward will contact the patient’s next of kin and we will try our best to accommodate them wherever possible
• Advocates/visitors who are required to make decisions on behalf of patients who do not have the capacity to make decisions for themselves

On arrival to any ward or department, any of the acceptable visitors stated above will be asked to immediately wash their hands and report to a senior sister or charge nurse. Visitors must also wash their hands or use the hand gel when they leave wards.

We appreciate your ongoing support with this difficult decision that will help us to better protect staff, visitors and patients from infection.

There may also be an increase in calls from relatives to Switchboard and wards asking for updates on their loved ones. The Patient Experience team is working on ways to support these colleagues in dealing with enquiries.

Co-amoxiclav injection shortage

Shortage information, alternatives and actions for staff can be found here:

• Drug shortages and alternatives

Outpatient video clinic toolkit

Please visit the "Remote clinics" page for the outpatient video clinic toolkit and other information.

• Remote clinics