AS you’re opening your presents and tucking into your Christmas dinner tomorrow, hundreds of hardworking staff will be looking after patients at York Hospital.
Here’s an insight into a Christmas Day in the life of staff at the hospital:
The labour ward
The birth of a baby is special at any time of the year but at Christmas it takes on even more significance, says Sue Jackson, lead midwife on the labour ward at York Hospital.
“The focus of Christmas is around labour and birth so we feel very privileged to welcome the Christmas babies onto the ward. It feels even more of a celebration at such a unique time.
“We have a special cot for the first Christmas Day baby as it is always an occasion. Everyone wants to know about the Christmas baby, whether the first baby is a boy or a girl, how much they weigh and what name they will be given.
“One Christmas tradition that tends to go by the wayside on the ward is the Christmas lunch. It’s a low priority for the midwives if it’s busy - most staff will have their Christmas lunch at another time. And the mums in labour are not too bothered about their roast turkey!”
About 3,200 babies a year are born at the unit but the arrival of babies is so unpredictable staff can never be sure how busy they will be on any given day. The one guarantee is that whatever time of day or night, midwives will be there to support mums-to-be as they do all year round. Sue added: “It’s an honour and a special time to be present at the birth of a baby so it makes for an extra special Christmas Day for the midwives too.”
The team making the Christmas dinner for patients and staff
The catering team at York Hospital has the task of feeding patients and staff across the trust all year round, but when it comes to Christmas they say they go to town.
A small team of around 25 staff start work at 7am on Christmas morning to provide lunch for around 700 patients and the staff who are working to keep the busy hospital running.
Seraph Mollier, facilities manager, said: “We are very grateful for the team here at York Hospital who come to work in festive spirit on Christmas Day. The team serves breakfast and a three course lunch and do their utmost to bring Christmas cheer to the wards.
“They always deliver meals to staff who can’t make it to the restaurant whether it is front desk, switchboard or porters. The festivities go on all day - at teatime the patients are served a Christmas buffet.
“Food is so important to people during the festive season, we want to make sure everyone can enjoy this special time as much as possible.”
Keeping the site safe
The weather is one of the many pressures facing the NHS this winter. Simple things such as making sure the paths and walkways on a hospital site are safe to walk on all contribute to keeping visitors and staff safe.
Behind the scenes at York Hospital there are around 150 sacks of salt to prevent slip hazards.
Mike Proctor, chief executive of York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, said: “When it comes to a hospital at Christmas people tend to think of all the doctors and nurses who work tirelessly to care for patients. While they are at the front end of patient care we’re equally proud of all our staff carrying out their essential roles 365 days a year.
“The estates and facilities teams play a vital role in keeping the hospital clean and well maintained, providing food, transporting and keeping people safe on our hospital site. There are many hidden heroes in the NHS and we’d like to thank them all for the part they play to keep everything seamlessly ticking over at this time of year.”
Nursing babies at home at Christmas
Bernie Wood won’t be switching her phone off over Christmas.
An outreach nurse for the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU), she will be there should any of her families need help.
Her job is to visit preterm or unwell babies who have been discharged home and provide emotional and practical support to the families.
Having been in the NHS for nearly 40 years, Bernie has worked at York Hospital for the last 35 years.
Bernie said: “I feel I have an amazing job, caring for sick and vulnerable babies, watching them grow, get better and then discharged home. It is a privilege to visit the families and their babies at home, to watch how well they do once home, and to be able to support and empower the parents as they finally start to be a family after what can sometimes be a long time on the unit, and quite a rollercoaster of emotions.
“Over the years there have been many changes with our approach to caring for these babies and their families. Not only the type of care and treatment they receive, but also how we involve the parents in caring and decision making. When I first started at Fulford, there were set visiting times for the parents to come to the unit and they had to wear gowns when holding their babies. Nowadays, we have open visiting and our approach is as partners in care with the parents - getting them involved from the moment their baby arrives on SCBU and helping them to make the decisions they want to make for their babies.
“I am proud to work for the NHS, even in these turbulent times. At the end of the day it is all about the patients and their families and the greatest gift we can give is to care about them, and to care for them for the best possible outcome.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel