Help get your relatives and friends out of hospital this festive season

Please lend a helping hand in getting your relatives and friends out of hospital this Christmas and New Year – this is the call from health leaders across Suffolk and north east Essex as the NHS is functioning under considerable pressure this festive season.

Any help that relatives and friends can give in getting patients out of hospital will make a huge difference.

In many cases, patients in our hospitals are ready and well enough to be discharged.

However, for those who can go home, friends, family and carers could step in by providing appropriate, temporary support.  If this is the case, they would be encouraged to make contact with the nurse in charge of their loved-one’s care.

Hospital teams and social workers will liaise with anyone able to provide this support, to ensure that they too are supported and to deliver a long-term solution for the patient’s welfare and recovery.

Dr Andrew Kelso, Medical Director at NHS Suffolk and North East Essex, said: “Health care staff across the patch are doing an incredible job during this challenging time, but we know that their burden could be lessened if we could discharge those medically fit patients who remain in hospital only because the support they need at home is not yet in place.

“I urge anyone who could offer support to a loved one who is well enough to go home to come forward – they’ll not only be helping that patient on the road to recovery, they’ll also be giving a big boost to the staff at our local hospitals, paramedics on the road, and GPs trying to get sick patients into hospital.”

Sue Wilkinson, Chief Nurse at West Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust said: “Once patients are ready for discharge, we know how important it is that they return home as it’s the best location for their recovery. Our trust, like many up and down the country, is extremely busy, and there is likely to be additional demand on our system during and after the holidays.

“If friends, families and carers are able to support the safe discharge of patients who are well enough to go home, we would really welcome their help and would advise they contact the nurse in charge of their loved-one’s care.”

Darren Darby, Chief Nurse at East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust (ESNEFT), which runs Colchester and Ipswich hospitals, said: “There really is no place like home. Getting our patients, who are well enough, home for Christmas and New Year is a big priority for us.

“No one wants to be in hospital any longer than they need to be. If they can spend precious time with their families, instead of being in one of our hospitals, we want to get them there.

“Please speak to our ward teams if you can help to get someone you love home to support them with their recovery. We will support you every step of the way to make that happen.

“We will also work with our Suffolk and North East Essex Integrated Care System partners to get patients who are ready to go home back where they want to be.”