Team Leeds has been jointly shortlisted for the Partnership Award at the HSJ Awards 2021!
Since the start of the pandemic over 70,000 people in Leeds have been identified as Clinically Extremely Vulnerable to Covid-19. This means that if they get the virus they are at higher risk of serious illness and death.
To protect their health, they were advised to not leave their homes when transmission rates were at their highest. This meant staying away from shops and pharmacies, limiting face-to-face contact with loved ones, and not going into their workplaces.
For the past 18 months, partners across Leeds have been working together to provide help and support to all clinically extremely vulnerable people: providing a much-needed lifeline to help them stay safe. Support has included delivering food and essentials, prescriptions, transport to essential medical appointments and social emotional support.
The partnership in Leeds has also worked hard to make sure that all clinically extremely vulnerable people get timely and important information in a way that makes sense for them. This has meant using text messages and mail outs as well as a telephone helpline. This has been a true Team Leeds effort, with colleagues from across the NHS, Council, Healthwatch Leeds, the community and third sector, and hundreds of local volunteers playing their part.
The partnership work of all those involved in supporting the most clinically vulnerable has been recognised for its outstanding contribution to keeping them safe. The whole Leeds health and care system has been jointly shortlisted for the Partnership Award at the HSJ Awards 2021. This is testament to the ongoing commitment to strong collaborative working in Leeds, and an example of how working as one team can benefit people at times when they are most vulnerable.
Support continues to be available to people who are clinically extremely vulnerable: for those who need to continue to take additional precautions, as well as those who are rebuilding their confidence with social interactions and everyday activities.
