Alder Hey Children’s Hospital has taken the rare step of admitting adult patients to help ease Liverpool’s increasing public health crisis during the pandemic.
The hospital has set up a designated ward for adult patients, of which there can be a maximum of nine at any given time, and stress it will not affect the ongoing treatments available to children.
A spokesperson for Alder Hey said: “Safe care for our children and young people remains our primary responsibility and priority.
“Our plans for the immediate future guarantee access to the levels of critical care beds for children and young people that we have had running over the last few months, with an ability to flex up to meet any increase in demand needed.”
The hospital add that they want to help out with the “pressing challenges” currently facing the City Region, and hope they can be there to help colleagues in other hospitals by taking in a small number of patients.
Nathan Askew, the Chief Nursing Officer at Alder Hey, says he is “so proud” of everyone who is stepping forward to take part in the new temporary ward, and says they had over 170 volunteers.
He adds: “We’re here and we’re open for any child whether they’ve got covid or not. If they feel unwell, they should definitely come in to see us.”
Improvements for healthcare workers across the city have been made since the first wave and yet challenges remain.
Volunteer Elizabeth Davies said: “Standards and procedures are already in place regarding PPE for the second wave. Wearing it seems habitual now and we no longer have to continuously adapt like we did at the beginning.
“In March the whole country was behind the NHS and you felt that spirits were high. However, now there feels like there’s less support and less gratitude. Plus, the cases and deaths are increasing which only makes work harder.”
Despite this, Ms Davies welcomes Alder Hey’s adult patient strategy as a “great idea” and says that the more flexible hospitals can be, the better chance there is of getting on top of the virus that has “strangled” our lives.