As you will undoubtedly be aware COVID-19 has been classified as a pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO) with cases still being confirmed at an increasing rate.  The situation with regards to COVID-19 is therefore changing daily.  The College of Paramedics aims to use this page as a way of communicating with you about the infection and its impact on you and your practice, and as a resource for official sources of further information.
COVID-19 is continuing to place extreme pressures on the NHS and wider health & social care services.  As professionals working on the frontline there is an increased risk of exposure to the virus, and paramedics also have daily contact with potentially at-risk members of the community.  It is imperative that we do all we can to reduce the rate of transmission of COVID-19 within society, to ease the burden on the healthcare system as a whole.

COLLEGE OF PARAMEDICS STATEMENT

The College of Paramedics has released a statement regarding the use of appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) when attending patients in cardiac arrest during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine

The Royal College of Emergency Medicine has also published a series of guidance and resources.
Click here to read.

Student Paramedics

The Health and Care Professions Council

The Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) have issued a statement recently regarding the suspension of CPD Audits:

“Individuals should comply with their CPD obligations, where time allows and if it is possible to do so.  In the current circumstances our Council has taken the decision to cancel the audit process for Physiotherapists as well as stop the audit process for other professions until further notice.” 
www.hcpc-uk.org/covid-19/adapting-how-we-regulate/ 

Wellbeing

As members, you may face situations you have never faced before within the context of COVID-19, particularly as the peak of this pandemic becomes evident.  The current evidence and policy suggest that this is likely to endure over several months which will not only have a continued impact on your workload but will also test your personal resolve.  It is equally important to us that you look after yourselves and your colleagues’ wellbeing during this time and use any support mechanisms that are made available to you.  Some resources that you might find useful are listed here:

• Help and tips for looking after your mental health during the Coronavirus outbreak by the Mental Health Foundation are here: http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/publications/looking-after-your-mental-health-during-coronavirus-outbreak
  
  
• NHS Mental Health Apps resource: http://www.nhs.uk/apps-library/category/mental-health/
  
  
• Headspace App ‘Weathering the Storm’ free meditation resource: http://www.headspace.com/covid-19
  
  
• The Royal College of Occupational Therapists have issued advice for staying well when social distancing: http://www.rcot.co.uk/staying-well-when-social-distancing
  
  
• ‘Living Life to Its Full' is offering free courses, covering low mood, stress and resiliency, for NHS and Health & Care workers: https://llttf.com/
  
  
• Unmind is a workplace mental health platform: https://home.unmind.com/
  
  
• Sleepio App - sleep improvement program: https://www.sleepio.com/
  
  
• How do we survive COVID-19? Blog by Andy Elwood, MCPara: https://www.andyelwood.com/2020/03/31/how-do-we-survive-covid-19/
  
  
• Develop new skills and discover new ways to improve your experience of work with short 10 to 20 minutes guides https://people.nhs.uk/
  

Staff Support Line

You can call for support, signposting and confidential listening.

Alternatively, you can text FRONTLINE to 85258 for support 24/7 via text.

Help and Support

 

TASC, the Ambulance Staff Charity is the leading UK charity providing support to all present and past ambulance staff and their families in time of need, both in the NHS and independent sector. The services are independent of the ambulance service, are confidential, and include:

• Psychological rehabilitation and counselling including stress and PTSD support
• Physical rehabilitation
• Financial grants
• Debt advice
• Welfare and other support
• Bereavement support

To find out more about TASC’s work, visit www.theasc.org.uk or talk to a member of their Support Services team on 0800 1032 999 / support@theasc.org.uk

FURTHER GUIDANCE

Gov.UK COVID-19: Guidance for Ambulance Trusts.
www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-ambulance-trusts/covid-19-guidance-for-ambulance-trusts#identification-of-possible-cases

NHS England and NHS Improvement coronavirus: Community based health and social care and Ambulance Services. 
www.england.nhs.uk/coronavirus/community-social-care-ambulance/#ambulance

Resuscitation Council (UK) Statements on COVID-19 (Coronavirus), CPR and Resuscitation
www.resus.org.uk/media/statements/resuscitation-council-uk-statements-on-covid-19-coronavirus-cpr-and-resuscitation/

The World Health Organisation Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak information 
www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019

Imperial College London Corona virus modelling and research resource
www.imperial.ac.uk/news/

The Library and Knowledge Service (Ambulance Service England) COVID19 - a guide to information resources: https://ambulance.libguides.com/covid19