[ad_1]
Hall 365 of the Östra Hospital, part of the Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg, is a psychiatric ward that welcomes people with, among other things, depression, anxiety and personality disorders.
The decision to temporarily close the department was made on Friday, December 4, and was implemented the following Tuesday. To start with, the ward will be closed until the second week of 2021. The ward’s staff, approximately 17 auxiliary nurses and nurses, will be distributed to other wards dealing with outpatient care at Östra Hospital.
Mathias Alvidius, Chief Operating Officer in room 365, he says the decision was made “in solidarity and in the best way” to help with staffing in covid care, which is also carried out at Östra Hospital.
For several of the nurses now in training, it’s been a while since they worked with physical health care, she says.
– Therefore, before sharpening, they will partly do a side walk and partly practice in a realistic environment the work steps that you then have to perform, says Mathias Alvidius.
How was the decision received by the staff?
– I think that on the one hand you feel that it is important that you try to help. On the other hand, of course, you are a little concerned about performing tasks that you have not done before and that you feel insecure about. And, of course, with new co-workers in a new context.
The decision, Mathias Alividius says, was prompted by an impact assessment and a risk assessment, as well as a union negotiation with the Healthcare Association.
– It is also the case that no employee will be responsible for himself, but will always work together with experienced medical personnel. We will also have a permanent dialogue with the departments they move to and if it doesn’t work for anyone, of course they won’t work there.
The loss of redistribution for psychiatric activities in the hospital coincides with the fact that during the Christmas holidays there are usually fewer applicants, according to Mathias Alividius.
– If we close a pavilion with 14 care places, then we have a total of 14 fewer care places, that’s all. But we generally have less search pressure during Christmas and New Years, he says.
He refers to a new report from the National Board of Health and Welfare showing that people who feel mentally ill were less likely to seek care during the pandemic.
– There is no definitive conclusion why. This may be because you don’t want to be a burden on healthcare. This may be because you are afraid of getting infected. But this year we have had many more care settings available than we usually have.
Also read: Karolinska cancels child surgery when staff moves
