Heartbeat: Lockdown smiles for shielding children – thanks to school nurses

December 8, 2020

Lockdown has been difficult for many families, but one team has been helping directly with youngsters who have been shielding.

The Sandwell school nursing team were approached by Sandwell Council at the beginning of the pandemic, as the country shut down, to discuss support for shielding families. And there were a variety of ways they were able to help, as Heidi Ferrier-Hixon, Team Leader, explained: “There were many families which were shielding due to having a child in the household that was considered vulnerable.

“As a service, we were able to offer support in various ways including a weekly telephone call to the family, requesting the delivery of a food parcel if needed, and educational materials for those children who needed more. Beyond that, we offered a listening ear emotionally but hadn’t been outside the house for several weeks. We found that the prospect of speaking to a nurse seemed exciting to them.”

“We contacted 228 families from May to September, and the support has been well received. Being able to speak to someone weekly whilst they have been unable to leave the family home has been helpful to a lot of families.

“One young girl identified in a weekly contact that it was her birthday the following week and was upset that she would not see family and friends. Her wish was to get a birthday card, so the nurse arranged to send one to her. Afterwards, the nurse received photos of a happy and excited young lady and a big thank you, having received her card.

“During lockdown, it was the little things that made a difference and all the staff have worked tirelessly to ensure that shielding families had what they needed from an essential point of view, but where also possible and able they have provided smiles.”