NHS uses lessons from Manchester Arena bombing to support staff mental health amid Covid

Health service workers suffering poor mental health as a result of the Covid pandemic are being offered specialist support from 40 new hubs across the country.

In response to widespread fears that many NHS nurses, doctors and other staff could suffer post-traumatic stress and other mental health problems, NHS England has said it will offer staff one-to-one expert help from qualified mental health clinicians, therapists, recovery workers and psychologists.

The hubs will be free of charge and confidential with staff encouraged to reach out for help as well as being proactively contacted if they are thought to be at risk.

It is based on a model used in Greater Manchester after the Manchester Arena bombing in 2017 which killed 22 people. It has supported more than 4,200 health and social care staff since the attack.

Recent research from King’s College London found nearly half of Intensive Care Unit staff were likely to meet the threshold for PTSD, severe anxiety or problem drinking during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In some NHS trusts up to one in five staff have shown signs of mental distress since the pandemic began.

Claire Murdoch, NHS England’s national mental health director said: “NHS staff are used to dealing with the extremes of life on a daily basis, but this year has been exceptional, and in what is likely to be the toughest year in their career, staff have put their minds and bodies to the limit treating hundreds of thousands of seriously ill-patients with Covid-19.

“So it is vital that the people that played such a big role getting this country through the pandemic are given additional support, and I would urge anyone working in the NHS whether you are a porter, a nurse, paramedic or other role to please ask for help from one of our 40 mental health support hubs as they open over the coming weeks.”

Occupational therapist assistant Yvette Hodge, who struggled with the pressure of the pandemic and worried she may be putting her elderly parents at greater risk, has received help from the Manchester hub.

Ms Hodge, who works at Pennine Care Trust said: "I was worried about my parents catching the disease and I felt guilty being at work and not being there to help them. Everything in our lives had changed, I didn’t feel the same and I couldn’t do the usual things in my life that helped me relax and unwind.

“I contacted the Greater Manchester Resilience Hub and spoke to one of their therapists and I just poured everything out to them – all my anxieties and worries - they really have been amazing and we developed a plan to help give more structure to my life."

NHS England mental health issues had contributed to staff absences during the first wave of the pandemic, when a new helpline, a 24/7 text service, and free access to wellbeing apps were set up for NHS staff struggling to cope.

In October 2020, NHS England and NHS Improvement invested an extra £15 million to strengthen mental health support for healthcare staff.

NHS England said a dedicated phone support service had been used 12,000 times while a bereavement support service for those who have lost friends or family has helped 280 people.