Recognising India’s harrowing ordeal and supporting those affected

As a Trust with a diverse workforce which serves diverse communities, our Chief Executive Dr Sara Munro blogs about how we can play our part in supporting those affected by the terrible Covid-19 situation in India. 

Many of you will have be shocked, as I have, by the harrowing scenes from India as the country grapples with soaring cases of Covid-19.

Millions of people are suffering, and the situation is being compounded by a lack of appropriate access to treatment, medical equipment and oxygen – resulting in hundreds of people dying daily.

This isn’t just India’s crisis, this is a global crisis. In the words of Dr Soumya Swaminathan, the World Health Organization’s chief scientist: “The virus doesn’t respect borders, or nationalities, or age, or sex or religion . . . and what’s playing out in India now unfortunately has been played out in other countries.”

At LYPFT we must recognise the toll this will be taking on colleagues, some of whom will have friends and family in India, and what a worrying and traumatic time this must be.

Therefore we’re asking managers and team leaders to check in with any staff who might be affected by this. In line with our values I know you will take a compassionate approach, as you have done throughout this awful pandemic, with staff that might need extra support, flexibility or time off.

As well as the support you can expect from your managers, team leaders and wider colleagues, I would like to remind you about the general support on offer from the Trust. This includes our Health Assured Employee Assistance Programme. Their helpline is open 24 hours a day on 0800 030 5182 offering support in a professional, friendly and non-judgemental manner.  Details about this, as well as a whole range of supportive wellbeing resources are on the staff wellbeing page of our website here.

As we serve such diverse communities, we should also recognise and acknowledge the toll this might be taking on some of our service users and carers. So for those working directly with service users and their carers please do check in with them and ensure they have the right support, as their mental health will be vulnerable from the additional trauma of what is happening.

Thankfully the world is not standing by and international relief efforts are under way. The UK has sent ventilators and oxygen concentrator devices, and EU members are also due to send aid. The US is lifting a ban on sending raw materials abroad, enabling India to make more of the AstraZeneca vaccine locally.

Colleagues from our Workforce Race Equality Network are actively supporting staff affected by this crisis. I have also received recommendations for two charities who are working directly with those on the ground should colleagues wish to donate personally.

They are:

Khalsa Aid – an international NGO providing humanitarian aid in disaster areas, and

Apna Ghar Ashram – a charity that works with some of the most disadvantaged people across India.

 

Thank you for taking time to read this message and for your support at this difficult time.

 

Dr Sara Munro

Chief Executive