Strangers connected forever

In the initial few days and then weeks following the news of the outbreak, the HR advisory team experienced a huge volume of calls and queries relating to covid symptoms, isolation requirements, leave arrangements and concerns about pay from both staff and managers. Due to this unprecedented volume of queries, the decision was made to step down the routine HR advisory work and a dedicated phone line was established to deal with these queries. As a team we very quickly had to become familiar with the ever changing guidance in order to be able to respond effectively This in itself was very challenging

Once Covid testing became available, as a team we manned the phone line, directing staff to the PCAS testing service, providing the PCAS admin team with details of staff and their household members who required a PCR test. These phone lines were operational 8am8pm 7 days a week. The volume we dealt with was like nothing I’ve ever experienced and had a huge impact on our work life balance. The phone lines in the early stages of testing often rang off the hook, and the calls would sit in a queue until answered. The system we used displayed the volume being received and the amount of calls queuing, and for me, this caused anxiety and stress knowing that the calls were backing up and needed to be answered as quickly as possible. This pace continued for a couple of months.

Once the volume of staff requiring testing began to slow, we then also undertook the task of maintaining contact with staff who had been instructed to shield due to underlying health issues and who were therefore unable to come to work We called each member of staff to check in on their wellbeing, offer support and in some cases just provide a listening ear.

One particular call will stay with me forever. We were provided with a list of names and phone numbers and had no details relating to the member of staff or their individual circumstances. One member of staff who I rang answered my call and was grateful to speak to me but was extremely distressed

I was completely caught off guard, but tried to provide her with a listening ear and give her some comfort and reassurance that she was not alone We talked for about twenty minutes. We both cried despite not actually knowing each other. Her situation really affected me and I called her again the following week. She was in a better place mentally the second time we spoke but I thought about her many times afterwards

I had called her just after she had been given the devastating news that her chemotherapy treatment was no longer working. She explained to me that she was shielding due to her cancer treatment but had just received the news that her treatment would not continue She had no close family, lived alone and was really struggling. I was the first person she had spoken to, other than her medical team and kind manager for several weeks.

Due to her situation, once shielding was lifted, she was too unwell to return to work and I supported her and her manager during her ill health She sadly passed away a few months later I still think of her a lot and I am grateful that I had the opportunity to hopefully be a comfort to someone who was a stranger, but became a colleague who I was able to provide support and advice to