As we approach the one year anniversary since Covid-19 was declared a pandemic, it often feels difficult to imagine what life was like before.

Covid-19 has impacted most of our lives one way or another but we must not forget that so have many other illnesses.

We will be living with Covid-19 for some time to come, so our message is clear – if you have a symptom of any illness, please get checked.

Some of you may feel like you do not want to visit our hospitals right now, however, looking after your health and wellbeing is paramount. This is why we have a number of national infection, prevention and control guidance measures in place to keep our patients, visitors and staff safe.

On arrival, we have a ‘screening’ process, which includes having your temperature checked and being asked a series of questions, as well as being reminded to wear a face mask and to sanitise your hands with alcohol gel, which is mandatory when entering our hospitals.

While continuing to follow national guidance with Covid-19 testing and isolation protocols, we’ve also zoned sections of our hospitals, created new entrances and restricted public access and staff movement to ensure the safety of everyone.

Speaking in his weekly stakeholder update, Tony Chambers, our Chief Executive, said: “Our hospitals are not just for Covid patients.

“Over the past couple of weeks, we have restarted endoscopy services at Queen’s Hospital, reopened the Birth Centre at Queen’s Hospital and started to carry out some of our higher priority planned surgeries. As we reintroduce more services, we will continue to do this in line with national guidance when it is safe to do so.” 

Recognising the times we are living in, we have also adapted the ways in which we provide our services to ensure you only need to come in to our hospitals if it is necessary. These have included telephone appointments, virtual clinics and interactive videos.

Speaking recently on World Cancer Day, one of our incredibly brave patients, Georgina Dutton, explained why it is important to get symptoms checked and how she has felt visiting our hospitals. She said: “If there is one message I want to say, it is to get checked! Do not stay quiet, even if you only have one symptom. I have felt very safe entering the hospital during the pandemic. There are so many procedures in place to keep people safe.”

Find out more about how we are keeping you safe in our hospitals.