Jordan Eggington – Saturday 25th December 2021 – 6am.
After another year full of incredible challenges and outstanding actions from staff, West Midlands Ambulance Service Chief Executive Anthony Marsh has issued a Christmas message to the thousands of staff and volunteers who have given so much to their communities over the past 12 months.
Mr Marsh begins: “I wanted to take this opportunity to record a personal Christmas message to all of our colleagues right across our organisation, to wish you all the very, very best for Christmas. The extent to which all of you have really stepped forward is a real testament to your ongoing professionalism, commitment and determination, all of which I am enormously grateful for. Always doing the right thing, often in difficult circumstances to support one another, to protect yourselves and each other and to do the right thing for the public and for our patients”
With a surge in the number COVID-19 cases of the Omicron variant over recent weeks, attention for much of the NHS is on increasing the number of staff and members of the public who are receiving the COVID-19 vaccinations and more recently the booster jab, when eligible. Mr Marsh is urging everyone to also continue with good hand hygiene and mask wearing: “It is even more important now that we carry on doing the right thing and continue to achieve the three ambitious objectives that I set out for the organisation for us all at the very start of the pandemic. Firstly, to protect all of our staff; to be able to help all of our patients; and thirdly to save as many lives as possible. Each of those objectives are as real today as they were at the very beginning of the pandemic and I’ll continue to do everything I can to protect you, so that together we can help all of our patients and we can save more lives.”
Staff and volunteers right across the NHS currently face substantial pressure, so it is incredibly important for colleagues to allow time over the festive period for self-care and reflection. Mr Marsh said: “This time of year is always special for us to be with families. As we move into Christmas and the New Year celebrations, given the pressure the NHS is under and the rise in COVID cases, I fear that the next few weeks are going to be even more challenging than we had hoped they would be. But I do really, really hope that you’re able to spend some quality time with your loved ones, time that you truly deserve.”