It can feel like we’re surrounded at times by Covid-19 statistics, from infection rates and hospital admissions to the number of people who have sadly died with the disease.

And while the data changes every day, hospital staff in Hull are keen to ensure the people behind the data, those whose lives have been changed by the disease due to a stay in intensive care, are not forgotten.

One way in which intensive care workers at Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust are doing this is through their bi-monthly Critical Care Support Group. The session is run by staff working in the department including doctors, nurses and physiotherapists. It provides a safe and confidential space for patients and families with experience of intensive care to share their experiences, to ask questions of the professionals and draw strength from each other.

Dr Pumali Gunasekera, consultant in critical care for the Trust says:

“The coronavirus pandemic has meant that we’ve seen more long stay patients through intensive care over the past year and a half than we would normally expect to see.

“A stay in ICU is often unexpected, and it can be very difficult for the patient as they struggle to understand what’s happening; they may feel distraught, angry or confused about things, they may have periods they don’t remember, or they may be struggling to adapt to life beyond their period of illness.

“At the same time, it can also be difficult for their family or loved ones who can also be left upset, distressed perhaps by what they’ve seen or experienced, or anxious about what the future now holds for them and their family.

“The Critical Care Support Group is a safe and confidential way for patients and relatives to talk about their experiences, their worries, and to seek advice from professionals and from others who have been in the same positon.

“Under normal circumstances, families would be able to visit their relatives freely in ICU and be able to meet with staff to discuss their progress. Covid-19 has led us to introduce visiting restrictions in ICU so that we can protect the most seriously ill, but this also means families are largely unable to have that face to face interaction; most conversations are had over the phone right now; so this is a way in which we can try to fill the gap.

“Many of us will have had someone close spend time in hospital but intensive care can be an altogether different experience, and with Covid-19 leading to more prolonged stays in intensive care lately, there could be many more people in need of this kind of help.”

The Critical Care Support Group was set up around seven years ago, in 2015, and since then the support provided by its members and hospital staff has helped scores of people come to terms with life in and beyond ICU.

The trust currently operates two critical care units across its estate; one at Castle Hill Hospital and another within the tower block at Hull Royal Infirmary. The latter will be replaced when work concludes shortly on a new three-storey, multi-million pound intensive care facility to the rear of HRI.

Dr Gunasekera is keen to stress that the Critical Care Support Group is suitable for patients and relatives with any experience of intensive care, not just Covid-19.

“Our world has been dominated by Covid-19 for so long now that it can be easy for people to forget that life goes on without it, but people are still involved in road traffic accidents or assaults, they still have cardiac arrests, donate organs, and they still undergo major surgery which requires extra support afterwards.

“The Critical Care Support Group is there to assist any patient who has been on the receiving end of any severe illness or injury resulting in a period of intensive care, and their loved ones, and who feel they would benefit by talking it through with others.”

For Covid safety reasons, the group is currently conducting virtual online meetings. These are held every two months, with the next meeting scheduled to take place on Tuesday 10 August at 2pm.

For more information or to request joining details, please email hyp-tr.hullicusupport@nhs.net or call (01482) 674689  / 461504.

Hull’s hospitals have declared their intention to be a UK leader in tackling the NHS’s impact on climate change.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (HUTH) is setting the ambitious target of becoming the first hospital trust in England to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030.

Now, the trust – which runs Hull Royal Infirmary, Hull Women and Children’s Hospital, Hull Eye Hospital and Castle Hill Hospital – is outlining its “Zero Thirty” plan.

Chief Executive Chris Long said: “Our target is ambitious but we are sending a strong message to the rest of the world that we intend to do whatever is necessary to overcome the climate crisis.

“The Humber is one of the coastal regions officially listed as high risk due to rising sea levels and increasing flood threat. Ninety per cent of our city lies below the high-tide line and the devastation caused by the 2007 floods is fresh in all of our memories.

“We will not stand by and do nothing. Our plans have already begun and we’re determined to do whatever it takes to accomplish our aims.”

The NHS has a massive impact on the environment and is responsible for more than five per cent of the UK’s total emissions, the same as emissions from 11 coal-fired power stations.

Net zero will be achieved when the amount of carbon emissions produced by the trust is balanced by the amount the organisation removes from the atmosphere.

To achieve “Zero thirty”, HUTH will

• Insulate roofs and external walls to reduce heating loss
• Slash building emissions in half by 2028
• Replace gas-fired boilers with air source heat pumps
• Use wind power to supply its offsite electricity
• Promote low-carbon travel for staff, patients and visitors and reduce business travel
• Send nothing to landfill by 2025
• Reduce anaesthetic gas emissions by 50 per cent by 2025
• Work with sustainable, ethical and local suppliers
• Remove single use plastics in all areas without a clinical need
• Reduce packaging
• Increase online appointments to reduce unnecessary journeys to hospital
• Harvest rainwater

The trust was awarded a £12.6m grant recently and has already started projects aimed at offsetting its carbon footprint.

Emissions from energy use have been reduced by 25 per cent already through energy efficiencies and 20,000 light fittings are currently being replaced by SMART LED lighting at Hull Royal and Castle Hill, as well as other hospital buildings around the city.

A ground-breaking solar panel field in Cottingham, expected to generate all of the hospital’s day-time energy needs during the summer months, is awaiting planning permission.

Mr Long said: “Our thoughts have all been about protecting our patients and staff from a global pandemic but we must not close our eyes to the global threat we face because of climate change.

“More intense storms and floods, more frequent heatwaves and a wider spread of infectious diseases are in our future unless we take immediate action.

“Reaching our country’s commitment under the Paris Climate Change Agreement could save almost 6,000 lives every year but we’d also save 38,000 lives if we get a bit more active and 100,000 if we ate healthier diets.

“These are preventable deaths that will impact the lives of every one of us so the onus is on all of us to act – and act now.”

An A&E nurse from Hull is leading a team of 16 people in a fundraising challenge set to get anyone’s heart thumping.

Amy Carberry, a staff nurse working in emergency care, will be among a team of CrossFit fanatics to cross the Humber Bridge this weekend simply by doing burpees.

The team, all members of CrossFit Hull & Humber (Anlaby and Sutton Fields), will be helping Amy to raise money for the mental health charity, MIND.

Members of CrossFit Hull & Humber

On Saturday morning, 31 July, they will warm up by walking from the Humber Bridge car park in Hessle over to Barton, then make the return journey, some 1.4 miles, in burpees.

Amy says:

“We’re living in really difficult times right now and a lot of people seem to be struggling or finding that their mental health is suffering.

“As a nurse, I often come into contact with people who are experiencing mental health problems of varying degrees, and it can be heart-breaking to see at times. While it is a subject which I think is becoming easier to talk about, I do think some people still feel there’s a stigma attached and so don’t always reach out for the help they need.

Amy at work in the Emergency Department, Hull Royal Infirmary

“I myself have struggled with my mental health in the past and MIND were a great support not only to me at the time, but also to my friends and family in enabling them to understand my issues and help me through.”

Amy is now the mental health and wellbeing champion for the Emergency Department at Hull Royal Infirmary where she works. She also takes part in CrossFit three to four times a week, and competes locally in the sport.

“Exercise and keeping fit really helped to give me a focus during some of my most difficult times, so it’s probably fitting that CrossFit should be a way for me to raise money for MIND to say thank you and enable them to help other people with mental health difficulties.

“MIND estimate that one in four people will experience a mental health problem of some kind in England every year, so the team and I would love people to support our efforts this Saturday as you really never know when you might need their help.”

The team estimate each person will need to complete around 2,000 burpees to make the one-way journey over the bridge, racking up some 32,000 burpees for the team in total.

Come rain or shine, they will begin their walk over to Barton at 11am on Saturday and armed with a ready supply of elbow and knee pads to keep them protected, they’ll finish when they finish!

To support the team with a donation, visit Amy’s Just Giving page: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/amy-carberry4?utm_id=27

Partners will be able to visit pregnant women and mothers and their newborn babies in hospital for up to four hours from today.

Hull Women and Children’s Hospital is introducing four-hour visiting slots in the morning and four-hour visiting slots in the afternoon from today (Monday, July 26).

Four-hour visiting slots are replacing one-hour slots following intensive work by Hull University Teaching Hospitals (HUTH) NHS Trust’s maternity team to keep all women and newborn babies as safe as possible throughout the pandemic.

Lorraine Cooper, Head of Midwifery, said: “Partners will be able to join their families for either four hours in the morning or four in the afternoon from today.

“Our priority remains the safety, not just of the women and babies in our care but of our staff working on the wards. Now more and more people have received vaccinations, it is safer for us to make some changes.

“But, even now, despite the easing of some national restrictions, we are still having to keep visitor numbers as low as possible to reduce the risk of this deadly disease spreading to women and their babies.”

In the past month, the trust has seen increasing numbers of pregnant women with the virus. They are cared for in a special, isolated areas of the hospital, with highly skilled maternity staff in full PPE tailoring care and support to their individual needs.

From Monday, women admitted as hospital inpatients to antenatal and post-natal wards will be able to book either the slot from 9am to 1pm or from 3pm to 7pm with the midwife looking after their care in the same way as the one-hour slots were booked. Only one slot can be booked for each day to prevent too many visitors being on either the antenatal ward or postnatal ward at one time.

Partners will be required to wear face masks and observe social distancing at all times to protect not just the person they are visiting but all staff and women on the wards.

As before, one birth partner can stay with women in labour on either the hospital’s labour ward or the Fatima Allam Birth Centre. Partners can attend outpatient appointments including scans following the creation of safety “pods” and changing the layout of facilities at the hospital to accommodate social distancing.

Lorraine Cooper said: “We are sorry restrictions have caused upset for women and their families. We have kept our visiting policy under constant review so we can make changes as soon as it is safe to do so.

“We thank people for understanding our reasoning and desire to keep not just them but us safe too so we stay well ourselves and are able to care for the next people coming into hospital who need us.

“Our new arrangements for visiting will be kept under review along with community infection rates and we will do whatever it takes to protect our wonderful staff and the women they look after over the coming months.”

Hull’s hospitals are bucking a national trend after attracting 2,000 new members of staff to work at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has recruited 900 registered nurses, 990 health care support workers and 110 medical consultants in the past five years.

Twenty medical consultants, 260 registered nurses and 300 health care support workers have been recruited in the past 12 months, despite the pandemic.

The trust is part of the hugely successful East YorkSHHire: “The Secret’s Out” campaign to attract the best talent to vital health and social care roles in Hull and East Yorkshire.

Vacancies are now at record low levels, with a 50pc reduction in vacancies for registered nurses, a  70pc reduction in vacancies for health care support workers and a 10pc reduction in medical consultant vacancies.

Chief Executive Chris Long said: “Our trust now has around 10,000 employees from every corner of the UK, representing more than 80 nationalities.

“We’ve managed to hire 2,000 additional staff from all over the UK as well as some from further afield who are a great asset in helping us deliver the best possible patient care.

“It’s no secret that staff shortages are a real issue for many hospitals around the country and the pandemic hasn’t made that any easier.

“Perhaps, in the past, our relative isolation worked against us in bringing people to our part of the world but we’ve turned that on its head to share the secret of what a fantastic place this is to work, live and play and it’s definitely paying off.”

The *East YorkSHHire” campaign an unprecedented recruitment partnership between East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Hull City Council, City Health Care Partnership CIC, Hull CCG, East Riding of Yorkshire CCG, Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Humber Teaching NHS Foundation Trust, Humberside Fire and Rescue Services, Humberside Police, Yorkshire Ambulance Service, Hull York Medical School and the University of Hull.

Launched in October, it has built on the success of earlier recruitment campaigns which have succeeded in bringing health care staff to the region.

A series of short films celebrate the distinctiveness and diversity of East Yorkshire, celebrating the connectivity of the area as well as low house prices and affordable cost of living with easy access to beautiful countryside, coastline and natural beauty. It also showcases the hidden beauty of the city, from the Marina and the Old Town to the revamped city centre, celebrating Hull’s cultural depth and its thriving communities.

A microsite, street advertising and brochures have been supported by a blitz on social media, encouraging health care professionals to take a look at what’s on offer at the trust and the other organisation.

The campaign tells the stories of people who have come to live, work and play in the area from as far afield as Nigeria, Poland, India, USA, and every corner of the UK.

A Hull surgeon saving children whose faces have been destroyed by an infection caused by extreme poverty and malnutrition is to showcase his work to a global audience.

Mr Kelvin Mizen, a maxillofacial consultant at Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, has spent more than a decade treating children in Ethiopia with Noma, a bacterial infection which can lead to gangrene.

Now, Mr Mizen has been invited to give a lecture to an international audience by the Head and Neck Academic Centre at UCL, the university in London rated the UK’s top university for research strength.

He joins a prestigious line-up of eminent maxillofacial surgeons from countries all over the world including Scotland, France, Ghana, Ethiopia, Germany and Brazil, who have been invited to outline their work.

His lecture – “A decade of experience with microvascular head and neck reconstruction in Ethiopia” – will take place on July 28 and is part of the international Head and Neck Webinar Series.

Mr Mizen’s work in Ethiopia was featured in Channel 5’s Extraordinary People series in 2018 when a documentary team filmed him saving two young women aged 14 and 20 after they developed huge tumours on their faces.

Noma, also known as cancrum oris, can be prevented with antibiotics and immediate nutritional support if detected early enough. However, when it goes untreated, it causes mouth ulcers leading to agonising swelling in the cheeks or lips. Gangrene sets in within days, leaving gaping holes in the faces of children. Around 90 per cent of people with Noma will die from sepsis.

The World Health Organisation estimates around 140,000 children, mostly under six, will develop the condition, present in 39 of the 46 countries in Africa, every year.

You can register for the free event, which starts at 7.30pm.

All patients, visitors and staff must continue to wear face masks and maintain social distancing when they come to Hull’s hospitals from next week.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is advising people that they must wear face masks and keep two metres apart from others at all times in all hospital buildings.

Visiting restrictions will also remain in place, although they will be reviewed regularly by senior staff.

Chief Executive Chris Long said: “We thank the public who have followed our restrictions since the start of the pandemic and we thank them again for their cooperation now.

“Our priority remains the safety of our staff and patients and the need to stop the spread of Covid-19 throughout our hospitals.

“The virus is still circulating in our community and we are once again seeing a rise in hospital admissions, reflecting increasing infection rates in Hull and surrounding towns and villages.

“Restrictions will remain in force for now although we’ll be keeping them under constant review to make changes as soon as it’s safe to do so.”

The advice from Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust comes after England’s Chief Nurse Ruth May reminded the public that everyone accessing or visiting healthcare settings must continue to wear a face covering and follow social distancing rules.

She said: “Face coverings and social distancing measures will remain in place across healthcare settings so that the most vulnerable people can continue to safely attend hospital, their GP surgery, pharmacy or any other healthcare settings for advice, care and treatment.

“And it is important for the public to continue to play their part when visiting NHS and care settings to help protect our staff and patients, particularly those who may be more vulnerable to infections.

“As restrictions are lifted in many places on Monday, everyone has a part to play in helping to control Covid by getting vaccinated and acting responsibly.

“It is vital that in healthcare settings, we do all we can to reduce the risk of infection for those working in our services and those who need our care.”

Doctors in Hull are to undertake major research aimed at improving the treatment of people with blood cancers.

Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Hull York Medical School (HYMS) and the Universities of Hull and York have been awarded £2.3m to help people with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) and High-Risk Myelodysplastic Syndromes (HRMDS).

Around 500 patients will take part in the study – funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), the research partner of the NHS, public health and social care – which aims to examine if blood tests can be used safely to identify serious fungal infections, reducing the use of antifungal drugs and safeguarding their future use.

Chief Investigator Dr Gavin Barlow, Senior Clinical Lecturer at the Medical School and an Honorary Consultant in Infection at the Trust is leading the project with Co-Chief Investigator Dr David Allsup, Senior Clinical Lecturer in Haematology at the Medical School and an Honorary Consultant at the Trust.

Dr Barlow said: “This research will place Hull at the forefront of the good stewardship of antifungal drugs so they remain effective for people developing life-threatening fungal infections in the future.

“Some patients diagnosed with AML and HRMDS can develop serious fungal infections while undergoing intensive chemotherapy. Because fungal infections are difficult to diagnose, patients are often prescribed antifungal drugs as a preventative therapy known as prophylaxis and then often receive more antifungal drugs on top if they become unwell.

“Our findings may prevent patients having to take prophylaxis drugs every day, which have potential side-effects and most patients don’t actually need. This reduction in use will hopefully decrease the risk of fungi becoming resistant to antifungal drugs, protecting them for patients who really do need them, both now and in the future.”

Hull researchers consulted patients with the help of Leukaemia Care before submitting their successful bid for funding and they will continue to be consulted throughout the study, expected to be completed in February 2026.

Dr Allsup said: “Patients told us the number of drugs they have to take is a burden but they did not think blood tests will be a big problem.

“Instead, some were concerned fungal infections might become resistant if we keep overusing antifungal medications.

“The grant will also help develop research capability locally in the areas of haematology and infection.”

The Hull team will work with the York Trials Unit at the University of York, researchers at the University of Liverpool and King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, and the AML Supportive Care Sub-Group of the National Cancer Research Institute.

They will also work with other NHS hospitals to see if the regular blood testing approach is a safe and effective way of identifying and treating serious fungal infections in this group of highly vulnerable patients.

A project has been launched today to discover what matters to mums-to-be and their families when choosing where to give birth.

Across the Humber, the NHS and other local partners are looking at ways to improve healthcare in the region and we want your input to help us make the best changes for you and your family.

We want to understand what’s important to you when choosing where to give birth so we can develop maternity and neonatal services for the future with you in mind.

Please take 5 minutes to complete this short survey to help us understand what is most important to you as we work to plan for the future:

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/YourBirthingChoices 

The survey will close on Friday 30th July 2021.

You can find out more about why we need to make changes, and keep up to date on this work and future involvement opportunities, by clicking here to sign up to the Humber Acute Services newsletter or by visiting the Humber Acute Services Programme website: www.humbercoastandvale.org.uk/humberacutereview

For more information on how your local maternity services can support you, please visit the Humber, Coast and Vale Local Maternity System’s website: https://www.humbercoastandvalematernity.org.uk/

News outlets across the country are today reporting hospital services to be under a significant amount of pressure.

Here in Hull, it’s the same picture; we’re seeing really high numbers of people seeking treatment from our Emergency Department but more notably, and in line with the national picture, we’re seeing lots of parents with children who are running a high temperature or fever.

Dr Ben Rayner, consultant in emergency medicine working in Hull Royal Infirmary’s Emergency Department (pictured below) is appealing for parents to consider all the options before visiting A&E:

“The number of people attending A&E has been gradually rising for some time and we are now back to pre-Covid levels of around 300 to 400 people every day. This puts extra strain on the physical space in A&E as we still have to social distance and limit numbers of people in the department, but for many patients it also means a much longer wait to be seen.

“We’re seeing a lot of parents right now seeking help for children with a high temperature, and while it’s understandable for parents to be worried, it’s also important to realise that high temperature in children is very common.

“Since lockdown has ended and as social restrictions continue to ease, families are going out more and children are increasingly coming into contact with others. As a result, they will naturally pick up coughs and colds; it’s a normal part of childhood but perhaps not something they’ve been used to over the past 18 months and it’s causing extra concern for parents because it seems out of the ordinary.

“A high temperature is the body’s natural response to fighting infection. In the majority of cases, a fever; that’s a temperature of 38⁰C or above, is short term, it’s something that can be managed at home with a bit of advice and the contents of your home medicine cabinet.

“If parents don’t feel able to do this, they should get advice from their local pharmacy, GP, or one of the urgent treatment centres across the region which are also open 7 days ‘til late. NHS111 is also available round the clock without even having to leave home.”

Dr Rayner adds:

“Sitting in A&E for hours with a child who’s under the weather isn’t anyone’s idea of fun, so we’d really urge parents to think carefully and use the full range of NHS services which are out there.

“Parents should also familiarise themselves with the signs to look out for which suggest a child’s fever is something much more serious. We don’t expect parents to be the experts, but a little knowledge goes a long way and will help our A&E no end when it comes to prioritising the most seriously ill or injured children.”

Emergency care consultants in Hull have produced the information below to help reassure parents of children with a fever and provide guidance on when to seek more immediate medical help: