Not fully done, no but life is getting back to normal. Almost everything is open again and I was back inside a pub this week. My colleagues are vaccinated, most of my family are vaccinated and most of the country is vaccinated.

The world has had 3,502,128 deaths but on the bright side it has had 1,770,327,717 vaccine doses administered as of today.

Scotland itself is sitting at:

• 0 new reported death(s) of people who have tested positive
• 4 people were in intensive care yesterday with recently confirmed COVID-19
• 83 people were in hospital yesterday with recently confirmed COVID-19
• 3,174,807 people have received the first dose of the Covid vaccination and 1,942,285 have received their second dose

The hospital I work in is largely back to normal with only a handful of cases now.

I’ve been working around COVID-19 since early last year. Those months for me have changed my life, I was not prepared for the amount of death or illness I have seen. I wasn’t prepared for the terror.

My experience of the pandemic is realistically over. I have been terrified and I have been elated. We have lost colleagues but we’ve all kept going. I am simply now relieved. The country, the National Health Service, have endured. We have also gained colleagues but more importantly, we now know for what the NHS can do when pushed to the edge and we know what the people of this country can do.

We started out with no hope, we’ve finished up with the pubs open again.

You know what? I think this will be my last entry. Whilst I made it and I am thankful, I am also regretful that many of my colleagues did not make it. Good luck everyone and take care.

Today I had a shift on a respiratory ward, one of the last wards in Scotland with a significant number of covid patients. Their rooms have been cleaned, the patients have been cheered up and the job has been done.

Todays COVID-19 stats are as follows, they’re a massive reduction on this time last year.

• 364 new cases of COVID-19 reported
• 26,582 new tests for COVID-19 that reported results – 1.6% of these were positive
• 1 new reported death(s) of people who have tested positive
• 21 people were in intensive care yesterday with recently confirmed COVID-19
• 174 people were in hospital yesterday with recently confirmed COVID-19
• 2,608,831 people have received the first dose of the Covid vaccination and 500,376 have received their second dose

I’m not scared now, I’m proud. Im proud that myself and my colleagues have beaten this. On the plus side, the pubs might be opening soon.

This week wasn’t great, I lost another colleague to the virus.

When the pandemic first hit our hospital he was the embodiment of ‘business as usual’, he always had a smile for anyone he met and he will be missed.

On the plus side, the vaccine numbers are rocketing up. Everyone I work with is now fully vaccinated.

Schools start back tomorrow, non-essential businesses soon after I hope.

I’m now fully vaccinated against COVID-19, something I never thought I’d be able to say.

The scale of the vaccine rollout has been impressive, thousands upon thousands day after day.

That’s all this week.

1 million Scots have now been vaccinated against the virus, over 12 million UK wide, that’s an amazing milestone. I didn’t imagine this would be possible last year.

Last March I was terrified about the damage this would do to my family and friends, but I’m optimistic now. My job in the NHS is an ancillary support role but even I have seen people pass away at work, including a number of colleagues.

People don’t talk about it but there’s a massive emotional impact, I’ve come home on-edge and snaped at my partner over silly wee things.

I enjoy my job and I take it seriously. I have been in, at this point, probably a couple thousand covid patients rooms since the start of the pandemic and I’d do it again in a heartbeat. It is my job.

The support from my nursing, auxiliary, portering, domestic, medical and facilities colleagues has been phenomenal. Next step is getting the pubs open, I miss a pint.

Another month, another hospital update from myself. Nothing important to say this month, the hospital is still busy.

As I said last time, these monthly posts are for my own mental health and are something to look back on once the virus has been sorted out. We have lost countless colleagues to the virus (and many of you will know we lost another this week) but we have a light at the end of the tunnel.

The vaccine programme is now in full swing.All staff are fighting this the best that they can and we’re winning. We aren’t new to COVID19, we’ve been through this before.

We’re keeping the wards clean and my nursing and medical colleagues are putting the patients on the right track to get them better.

Every cog is working as it should, we know how to beat it and we’re all (all staff in all roles) doing our best.We’ve been through this before and we will beat this wave just like we beat the first.

The NHS is rising to the challenge as always. #COVID19

COVID-19 self-testing for healthcare staff using a Lateral Flow Device has started, I am taking part in the trial. This is a game changer, it allows me to be tested before every shift and prevents the possibility of spreading the virus in the hospital.

I’m genuinely very happy about this.

Another month, another post moaning about what’s going on in the hospital.

Though, this isn’t a moan for a change.I posted in July about how ‘we aren’t out of the woods yet but we’re getting there’, well that didn’t happen, things got much worse. In November, I posted that the wards are filling up with COVID-19 patients but I didn’t know just how serious that would turn out to be.

The hospital is filling back up with COVID-19 patients, it’s getting as bad as it was the first time around.

In some places it’s actually worse.Everyone is still smiling but for most staff, myself included, the worry is there. The worry isn’t for ourselves but for our loved ones we might pass the virus on to. I don’t want people I love to suffer just because I work in a hospital but no one says a word about the fact that knowing me means they’re more at risk of catching coronavirus.

My family, my friends and my colleagues are supportive regardless.I post something like this every few months but as I said at the time, I think it’s important to take a note of what’s going on and what people are doing about it.I don’t have the most important job in the hospital, far from it, but I firmly believe that we are ‘one team for patient care’, everyone has a role to play in keeping our hospital running and fit for purpose.

What I do matters in the grand scheme of things, that’s why I don’t mind doing it despite the risks to myself and that’s why I’m proud to work for the NHS.Once we’ve beaten this, it’ll be important for our own mental health to reflect on everything.NHS staff have been under immense pressure and stress since early 2020, things got a wee bit better before plunging back into a terrifying situation. We aren’t beaten, though.

I suppose the main reason I’m posting this is to let people I work with know that it can only get better. Now more than ever, I’ve noticed that staff in the hospital (of all roles, in all departments) have went above and beyond their normal duties in order to deliver or to support patient care during this unprecedented time of crisis. Everyone from domestics to doctors are working flat out and going the extra mile to keep the hospital running, not to mention our army of volunteers.I have never seen my colleagues so stressed or busy.

Things are slowly grinding to a halt again but there’s a silver lining, the vaccination.I was told today that most staff in our hospital now have the vaccine and they expect to get the last few wards and departments done over the next couple of weeks.It’s terrifying, it’s stressful but we beat the first wave and we’ll beat this wave too. #TeamNHS

To ensure patient, staff and visitor safety, visiting arrangements have changed due to recent developments during the COVID-19 outbreak.

This is in response to communication from Scottish Government on Saturday 19 December advising of the potential for the new COVID-19 variant to spread more easily and the plan for all local authorities within NHSGGC alongside other areas in Scotland moved to Tier 4 from Saturday 26th December. 

The hospital is once again empty, lonely and genuinely very saddening.

I have had my first vaccine dose, for the first time I see an end to this horror. I also spent the afternoon at work making sure my facilities and nursing colleagues were signed up for their first dose.

The leaflet for the vaccine said:

“Protect yourself:

• If you’re a frontline worker in the NHS, you are more likely to be exposed to COVID-19 at work. Healthcare workers are at a much higher risk of repeated exposure to the infection.
• Catching COVID-19 can be serious and may lead to
long-term complications. These are more common
in older staff or those with underlying clinical risk factors.
• Being healthy does not reduce your risk of catching COVID-19 and passing it on.

Protect others:

• You can spread COVID-19 to patients and colleagues,
even if you have very mild symptoms or no symptoms
at all.
• Reduce your risk of getting COVID-19 and spreading
it to others, especially those who are most at risk.
• You could bring the virus home to family or loved ones, even if you do not have obvious symptoms.

Protect our NHS:

• With high rates of COVID-19, it’s more important than
ever to stop the spread of COVID-19, to avoid pressure
on the NHS and to keep the healthcare workforce healthy.
• The COVID-19 vaccine should help reduce the rates of serious illness and save lives.”