COLUMN: ‘Talk before you walk’ to help us help those in greatest need

At the difficult times we’ve all been living through, words like these are particularly poignant, writes Maz Fosh, chief executive at Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust.

These kind words were given in return for sharing a letter of thanks to the children of our dedicated colleagues, to recognise the sacrifice they had made by sharing their parents and other loved ones with us and our patients at this incredibly busy and strange time.

To date, I’ve sent more than 370 letters out and it’s been a real pleasure to provide this small act to recognise the lengths colleagues are going to in keeping critical services running.

While recognising our need to remain alert, we are now focusing on how we safely welcome patients back to our highest priority services over the coming weeks. We are also looking at what we have learned during this time, including from those we care for and partners we work alongside.

One of our real successes has been in increasing our use of digital technology to support the delivery of our services. This is also where we would really like your help.

As you prepare to re-establish some of your more normal routines, we ask you to ‘talk before you walk’ into services. This means speaking to your GP or one of our experienced clinicians in our award winning Clinical Assessment Service, via NHS 111, when you need help quickly, but it is not an emergency, before attending urgent care services in person.

By sharing your questions or concerns, we may be able to treat your symptoms via a telephone or video consultation, arrange for a home visit or make you an appointment at your nearest Emergency Department or Urgent Treatment Centre.

This helps us to make sure the right services in Lincolnshire are available for those who really need them.

If you feel you have a medical emergency, please call 999. Lincolnshire’s NHS services continue to be open, available and here to support you.