At the start of the Covid-19 lock-down, Cllr Nicky Wylie, along with thousands of others, bravely answered the call for recently retired nurses and other healthcare workers to return to the NHS to support their colleagues through the Pandemic.
Nicky's experience has seen her return, on a part-time basis, to the neonatal care unit at St Mary's Hospital in Manchester, alongside her daughter, Emma who is on the permanent staff!
Nicky's role and that of all those who answered the call, is to ensure that NHS essential services are maintained as far as possible, whilst other staff are redeployed to Covid Wards or need to self-isolate.
On discussing her return as part of covid response team. Nicky explained:
"I am returning to nursing as I feel that as a healthcare professional with 30 years of previous experience it would be morally wrong not to. Of course I do have reservations - 13 hours shifts and working nights again will be a shock to the system but the more professionals who can help, the better the NHS will cope with this crisis and the potential for saving lives will hopefully be increased.
Unfortunately other illnesses such as cancer and heart disease will still continue to affect residents even as the NHS deals with the pressures of covid 19. However it is over 30 years since I last nursed adults! My registration as a health visitor/school nurse expired last year prior to which I practised as a neonatal nurse from 1989. With this in mind, I felt that my skills would be best used on the neonatal intensive care unit.
Babies are still being born prematurely and so maintaining staffing levels on neonatal units is critical if staff have to self isolate or have the virus. If staffing levels fall, there is a real concern that units will have to close. If my return to work helps to keep a neonatal unit open then it will all be worth it!"
Cllr Wylie serves the Poynton East and Pott Shrigley Ward with Cllr Jos Saunders. This dynamic and pro-active team are working closely together to accommodate Nicky's shifts whilst continuing to meet the needs of their residents.
https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
(Photo: Cllr Nicky Wylie back on the Neontal Ward with her daughter, Emma).
