COVID-19 Bulletin: Thursday 17 March

March 17, 2022

Numbers not statistics: This week (last week) 

(Note: Percentages may decrease due to changes in the number of inpatients and in the number of staff members (starters and leavers).

1. New: Mandatory vaccination change  

Colleagues should be aware that the Health and Social Care Secretary has confirmed that the original regulation making COVID-19 vaccination a condition of employment in health and social care was formally revoked on Tuesday 15 March 2022. This decision followed a public consultation where 90 per cent of responses supported the removal of the legal requirement for health and social care staff to be double vaccinated.

The regulations that have now been revoked include:

• Regulations requiring COVID-19 vaccination to work in Care Quality Commission registered care homes to be lifted from 15 March.
• Legal requirement for health and social care staff to be double jabbed from 1 April to be removed.

The requirements for vaccination as a condition of employment has been removed from all Trust job adverts.

COVID-19 vaccination remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course our patients from the virus when working in our healthcare settings. We do encourage our staff to get vaccinated. We will be organising further panels lead by clinical leads and specialist experts regarding COVID-19 vaccines for staff in the near future. You can find more advice regarding the vaccine information or additional support from:

https://www.blackcountryandwestbirmccg.nhs.uk/your-health-services/health-advice/covid-19-vaccination

Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance and support – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

National health and wellbeing tools

The FAQs have been updated and are on Connect here. This includes advice on what to do if patients ask about the vaccination status of staff who are caring for them

2. Reminder: We have now moved from LAMP to lateral flow testing  

We have moved our testing for COVID-19 from LAMP to lateral flow tests. Colleagues must complete two tests a week at home before coming in to work.

We all know how important testing is and as restrictions have eased, we must remember that as healthcare colleagues, there is still a chance that we will come in to contact with those suffering with COVID-19 and vulnerable patients – so it’s critically important that we continue to test and report.

Order your lateral flow kit online here: https://www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests. The Trust is currently awaiting national advice on whether lateral flow tests will be provided free for health care workers from April 2022.

Please report your test results on the Trust’s own Lateral Flow Test reporting form which can be found by clicking here.  Note: To submit results, colleagues will be required to login with their NHSmail email and password.

You do not have to report your results on the government website but you can do both if you choose.

Colleagues are reminded that any unused LAMP test bags and sample containers can be returned to the phlebotomy departments on each site.

3. Reminder: General visiting entry restrictions eased – lateral flow testing only required in maternity

We have eased our general visiting restrictions to remove the need for visitors to inpatient areas to show evidence of a negative lateral flow test. The following points summarise our rules and are for those wards where visiting is allowed (amber wards only). Visiting red and green departments is only allowed on compassionate grounds (this is where a visit by a carer or family member is central to ensuring that the patient’s fundamental care needs are met). All wards regardless of COVID status should ensure robust systems remain in place to support regular communication between patients and their loved ones.

To visit a patient on an amber inpatient ward:

All visits must be booked in advance by telephoning the ward to allow wards to limit the number of visitors on a ward/bay at any one time. Ward staff should ensure that visitors are given the following information prior to visiting:

1. All visitors must be free of COVID-19 symptoms, and must not attend if they are a household contact of a COVID-19 positive case. We regret children (under 16 years) or those who are immunocompromised are currently not allowed to visit.
2. Patients in amber areas should be supported to receive one visitor for up to 30 minutes per day. Patients can nominate two individuals who can visit for the duration of their stay, ideally from the same household. There should be no more than 2 visitors per bay.
3. Visitors must use hand sanitiser and wear a fluid resistant surgical face mask on entry.
4. All ward areas must ensure adequate supply of PPE for all visitors and recheck they are wearing a mask on entry to the ward and have sanitised their hands.
5. Staff should continue to strongly advise patients to wear their masks and ensure a minimum of one metre distancing is in place at all times.
6. Bay/ward areas should be well ventilated.
7. Weather permitting – visiting can be conducted in the hospital grounds as long as the patient is medically stable and can be kept safe.

The current visiting arrangements for paediatrics, maternity and ICU remain in place. Our usual exemptions apply for inpatient children, those at end of life and people who lack mental capacity.

We continue to review visiting arrangements based on a risk assessment taking into account COVID-19 case rates in the community and numbers of COVID-19 cases in our hospitals.

For more information see the visiting information here.

4. Reminder: Still need to get your COVID-19 vaccinations?

If you still haven’t had your COVID-19 vaccination there is still time to get the jab and help protect yourself and others from COVID-19.

The vaccination hubs are open daily at City and Tipton, no appointment necessary, just drop in.

Here are current opening hours:

• Tipton Sports Academy Vaccination Centre (*walk-ins) – 8am – 7pm (*6pm)
• City, Sheldon Block (*walk-ins) – 8am – 7pm (*6pm)

5. Reminder: Annual leave carry-over arrangements and sell back scheme 2021/22 

Colleagues now have the option to carry over or sell back as detailed below:

• Colleagues will be allowed to carry over leave to the next leave year (1 April 2022 – 31st March 2023). Statutory minimum leave that must be taken is 20 days of AL, plus 8 bank holidays (28 in total). The maximum leave that can be carried over will be the number of days over the statutory minimum.
• Colleagues will be able to sell back 50% of their remaining annual leave over the 28 days Statutory minimum.

Statutory leave provisions still apply, so you will still need to take at least 28 days of leave during 2021/22 and 2022/23. This is important for supporting the health and well-being of staff at this challenging time. This arrangement also applies to colleagues whose leave year is different to the Trust’s financial year. Full details are in the guidance.

Is it imperative for the Trust to have oversight of the management of annual leave, therefore it is a requirement to ensure that all planned and taken annual leave is recorded on ESR/eRoster or the Doctors Leave System as appropriate – your application to sell back your annual leave to the Trust will not be accepted unless your records are up to date.

For further information or to apply for this scheme please click here. The request form is also included at the end of the guidance.

The annual leave sell back scheme closes tomorrow (Friday 18 March). Any approved sold annual leave will be paid in April 2022.

If you require further guidance, please talk to your line manager. You can also seek confidential advice from the trade unions swbh.unioncollective@nhs.net.

6. Reminder: Keep fit at Sandwell or city gym 

As colleagues may be aware, the gym at Sandwell recently reopened. If you wish to use the gym facilities, simply register your interest to use the gym with the wellbeing team and following a simple induction you can begin to use the gym to keep fit. Located on the ground floor of Trinity House, the gym accommodates a maximum of two users at any one time and colleagues will be limited to a maximum of 40 minutes each. Please remember to wipe down equipment after use. For ventilation, the onus will be on colleagues to open windows whilst exercising and close when finished.

In regards to the city gym we’ve created the space you need to work out while keeping a safe distance. The gym has also been rearranged and clearly marked out for you to use safely, so it is easy for everyone to follow. The maximum number of users is five at any one time with the maximum gym time usage being one hour per visit, in order to allow other colleagues the opportunity to use the facility.

We’ve placed more hand sanitiser dispensers and wipes around both gyms so it’s easy to regularly clean your hands and equipment during your visit. We ask that you also sanitise your hands before entering the gym to keep yourself and others safe.

• Existing members: Your pass will already be activated ready for use
• For new members: Please contact Jatinder Sekhon, by emailing jatinder.sekhon@nhs.net or call 0121 507 3854 to complete your registration