'Hospital looked like scene from ET': Russells Hall staff recall start of pandemic
When coronavirus first came to Russells Hall Hospital, nurse Beth Farney said the scene looked like something out of ET.
She recalled seeing medical staff dressed in hazmat suits through the doors to an intensive care unit, depicting a scene reminiscent of the fictional film, where the American Government visits the poorly extra-terrestrial.
The Covid pandemic has itself brought about alien changes to our society, in the form of strict lockdowns, the enforcement of face masks and social distancing rules.
For NHS staff who have been working non-stop on the coronavirus frontline, they have endured a year never to forget – one they will talk about for years to come.
Ms Farney, 34, a practice development nurse, and Dr Mulrali Veerabahu, 40, who oversees two departments at the Dudley hospital, spoke to the Express & Star about their thoughts on the pandemic and their hopes for a brighter year in 2021.
Ms Farney, from Dudley, who has worked at Dudley NHS Trust since 2009, said: “I remember one of the first shifts and I looked through the ITU [intensive care unit] doors and it reminded me, you know the scene out of ET, where they are all in their sort of hazmat suits, it actually reminded me of that.
“I thought, on ET everyone was like ‘what is going on?’ And that is one of the first things that I saw and thought, when I first came [to the hospital at the start of the pandemic]. It was very strange, it didn’t feel comfortable, it still doesn’t feel comfortable now.”
A theme told by staff at Russells Hall is how the hospital pulled together in unprecedented times to face one of the biggest challenges the NHS has ever seen.
Staff were forced take on extra work alongside their existing jobs, while retired health workers and volunteers were drafted in to help.
Dr Veerabahu, originally from Sri Lanka, but now living in the West Midlands, described the pandemic as a “once in a 100 years event”.
He said: “I have a little daughter, she talks about the virus, she has been restricted in her movement. We tell her, because of the restrictions, we can’t do many things. She is beginning to understand but I think we will tell her, as she grows up, about this being a momentous time for us, and how we pulled through this. Because this was a once in a 100 year event.”
Dr Veerabahu says most staff have not had a chance to re-charge their batteries, with many working extra hours due to colleagues going off sick or self-isolating.
Ms Farney described this year as being “very challenging” with the pandemic being “something completely new and different”.
In the first wave, a lot of routine treatment was cancelled due to the uncertainties around Covid. However in the second wave, more of that of care, including in the emergency department and elective care, has returned – putting more pressure on staff.
Ms Farney, who works in critical care, said: “Wave one, it was like adrenaline kicked in almost, because we had to get on with it. We didn’t know what we were dealing with, the doctors worked immensely hard.
“Wave two has been slightly different because you actually know what you are going into. We knew how hard it would be.
“On top of that, it is not just covid patients that we have in intensive care. We have people who come in and need intensive care beds for other reasons. That in wave two has been just as demanding as covid in wave one.
“This time we have had lots and lots of patients with covid and without covid. Our workload has increased dramatically.”
Dr Veerabahu added: “It has made it a bit harder at the front door, essentially stretching the resources and the care the NHS has to offer, compared to what we did, where we cancelled a lot of activity to support the pandemic [in the first wave]. This has been harder the second time around.”
But Farney paid tribute to her colleagues who have “really pulled together”.
She added: “People have gone really above and beyond what their duties would be to come and help us, we are so very grateful for that.
“It has been difficult, it has been challenging, but we have stuck together. We have laughed together, we have cried together, they are normal emotions actually.
“At the end of the day, we are stronger team for it.”
The launch of the Pfizer vaccine has brought hope in the fight against Covid. With this development, Dr Veerabahu and Ms Farney are hoping for a better 2021.
Dr Veerabahu said: “Hopefully there will be less restrictions in 2021 and from a hospital point of view, hopefully it will be back to where it was.”
Ms Farney added: “Yes I’m definitely looking to brighter times. Hopefully, this is the light at the end of the tunnel.
“For me, hopefully with the vaccine coming through, everyone is starting to get vaccinated against it.
“It won’t be a quick fix. People will still need to comply with the things that the Government has put in place.
“It is not just about having the vaccine, the vaccine is not everything. It is one of a combination of things that will help with this pandemic.”
