THE brutal reality of the coronavirus pandemic is being felt across Hampshire hospitals during the second wave.

Every day, the story of Covid-19 is being retold in figures: grim statistics about infection rates in the community, hospital admissions, and the UK death total now over 100,000.

For Julie Dawes, chief nurse at Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundations trust which runs Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital, Andover War Memorial Hospital and Royal Hampshire County Hospital, the pandemic is a daily challenge for her.

She told the Advertiser: “The number of patients going into critical care is on the increase the key thing is to keep managing those patients really well and making sure we are able to use staff as flexibly as possible to care for patients. It is a long time now for staff to have been caring for patients and wearing PPE so there’s no doubt that staff are feeling tired.

“And the thing is this second peak is likely to last longer than the first and that is really a test of our resilience but we do have lots of things in place to care for staff and support them. I have no doubt we will do it but clearly it is a big ask of staff.”

The trust’s hospitals are caring for around 250 covid patients- over double the amount of patients the trust cared for during the first wave- a surge that is being blamed on the combined effects of eased Christmas restrictions and the more infectious new variant.

“The key message is please stay at home unless you absolutely need to go out for anything essential.

“Your behaviour directly affects our ability to care for you safely and when I say that, it is not just patients that have Covid but patients who have long Covid or who need non-emergency surgery.

“The more people who mix, means more people in hospital and it makes it more difficult for us to care for everybody.”

Asked about Covid cynics and those who film fake videos of empty hospitals, Julie said: “It’s sad when we see these fake videos because staff are obviously coming in and working incredibly hard but the end of the day we have to come in and just get on with our jobs. Our staff are tired and they still have family to look after and children’s to look after just like anybody else but sometimes those tensions can be the final straw.”

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Julie has nothing but praise for her colleagues: “I am so proud to be part of this trust and working with amazing people every single day I could not ask more of the staff and I just like to say thank you to everybody.

“And also thank you to the public because we had amazing support from them as well and it helps it really makes a difference.”

Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital staff appeared in a new hard-hitting national campaign that urged residents to stay at home.

Testimonials from local medics are part of a new government campaign reminding the public of the extreme pressures still facing the NHS.

The advert features the powerful phrase: “Look them in the eyes and tell them you are doing all you can to stop the spread of COVID-19." 

Julie spoke highly of the staff involved: “We are really proud actually I think the staff did a really good job with what is a serious message. We are clearly very proud to be part of the team that is getting that message across but equally it’s been nice for the staff to be recognised as well.

“You can’t get away from the fact that they came over really really genuine. We are living and breathing it every day and I hope it will get the message across.”