{"id":27247,"date":"2021-01-04T13:24:10","date_gmt":"2021-01-04T13:24:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=27247"},"modified":"2021-01-04T13:39:06","modified_gmt":"2021-01-04T13:39:06","slug":"govt-must-get-a-grip-says-unite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=27247","title":{"rendered":"Govt must \u00e2\u20ac\u0098get a grip\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 says Unite"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Hard-pressed, heroic NHS staff continuing to\u00c2\u00a0battle the covid-19 crisis are being badly\u00c2\u00a0let down by a government which, 10 months into this crisis,\u00c2\u00a0is still failing to ensure that\u00c2\u00a0the workforce is getting the protection it needs,\u00c2\u00a0Unite said on December 31.<\/p>\n

Commenting on the increasing\u00c2\u00a0reports of a system under siege, Unite national officer for the health sector, Colenzo Jarrett-Thorpe, said that the union is now\u00c2\u00a0receiving concerning reports of\u00c2\u00a0an absence of the correct protective equipment (PPE) for some\u00c2\u00a0NHS staff treating the sick.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bFrom paramedic to porter, the catering assistant to biomedical scientist, the system is under severe strain,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Jarrett-Thorpe said.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bYears of underfunding and\u00c2\u00a0chronic staff shortages have\u00c2\u00a0left the NHS badly ill-equipped to cope with what is\u00c2\u00a0now a rampant\u00c2\u00a0second strain of the virus. The mounting pressures are\u00c2\u00a0taking a heavy toll on\u00c2\u00a0an already exhausted workforce.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

And just when exhausted NHS workers are at breaking point \u00e2\u20ac\u201c we seem to be still fighting to keep staff safe by having access to the right PPE. When will this major issue be resolved?<\/p>\n

Jarrett-Thorpe added, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bTo add to this appalling sense of siege,\u00c2\u00a0we are again\u00c2\u00a0receiving distressing\u00c2\u00a0reports\u00c2\u00a0about a lack of suitable PPE for staff treating highly infectious,\u00c2\u00a0sick patients and rising numbers of staff self-isolating or contracting Covid-19.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0098Speak up\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 plea <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bUnite is calling on NHS staff\u00c2\u00a0to speak up about this; let us know what PPE is needed and we will do all in our power to get the employers to get this to\u00c2\u00a0you with urgency.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

He continued, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bOur NHS staff are heroic, of that there is no doubt, but they are also\u00c2\u00a0exhausted, their mental health is suffering and morale is sinking.\u00c2\u00a0They struggle on, caring for us despite the mixed messaging on public health and the absence of leadership from the top of government.<\/p>\n

“It is absolutely sickening\u00c2\u00a0that despite the cushy contracts and\u00c2\u00a0the cronies\u00e2\u20ac\u2122\u00c2\u00a0bank balances swollen with public money,\u00c2\u00a0overworked and underpaid NHS staff on the frontline of this crisis are not getting the support and protection that they need.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe very least this government should be doing for them is to keep them as safe as possible \u00e2\u20ac\u201c while they give their all to keep us safe.<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe worst of this wave has yet to be upon us.\u00c2\u00a0The government needs to get a grip,\u00c2\u00a0show leadership\u00c2\u00a0and act to\u00c2\u00a0do everything needed to\u00c2\u00a0protect frontline workers and\u00c2\u00a0the public,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he concluded.<\/p>\n

Compiled by Amanda Campbell\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 @amanda_unite <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hard-pressed, heroic NHS staff continuing to\u00c2\u00a0battle the covid-19 crisis are being badly\u00c2\u00a0let down by a government which, 10 months into this crisis,\u00c2\u00a0is still failing to ensure that\u00c2\u00a0the workforce is getting the protection it needs,\u00c2\u00a0Unite said on December 31.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":20265,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1308,1],"tags":[1295,290,29,1316],"wps_subtitle":"Hero NHS staff working under siege desperately need\u00c2\u00a0support and\u00c2\u00a0correct PPE","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27247"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=27247"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27247\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27249,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27247\/revisions\/27249"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/20265"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=27247"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=27247"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=27247"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}