An open letter: Thank you – from all at First Community Health and Care
As the NHS prepares to celebrate its 72nd birthday this Sunday (5 July), we at First Community Health and Care wanted to take the opportunity to say thank you to our patients, partners and the wider public across Surrey for their support and understanding during the last few months.
The coronavirus pandemic has been a challenging time for everyone, but over the last 16 weeks we have seen the communities we serve show us immense kindness, understanding, and appreciation.
On Sunday at 5pm we will be participating in the #ThankYouTogether ‘big clap’, but as well as clapping for our colleagues across the NHS and other key workers, we’ll be clapping for you!
So many of you have done your bit during the difficult weeks of lockdown, which in turn has made it easier for us to operate and continue to deliver vital community healthcare services to some of our most vulnerable patients.
You have helped us to manage social distancing safely by phoning before arriving at our Caterham Dene Minor Injury Unit; and by attending virtual clinics, having telephone consultations or even learning new healthcare tasks – such as replacing tubes and batteries in your hearing aid or managing your own insulin injections - adapting to new ways of working brilliantly, for which we are really grateful. This has created the capacity we have needed to support those in the greatest need and allowed some of our staff to be redeployed into urgent work to manage the pandemic.
Many local businesses have also donated a range of lovely things to keep the morale of our employees high – rays of sunshine each and every time they appeared.
Although restrictions are slowly lifting we know the coming months won’t be easy. The changes made to some of our community healthcare services will need to be returned slowly and carefully. For some services the opportunity to use more virtual approaches may be something we embrace, and we look forward to exploring the potential of this with you.
But, rest assured, whether we care for you in a clinical setting, virtually, or with you in your own home, our commitment to delivering high-quality and first-rate health care to you all remains.
Sarah Billiald
Chief Executive
First Community Health and Care
Watch our #ThankYouToegther video with messages of thanks from staff during the COVID-19 pandemic
