The 23rd March marks exactly one year since the UK was placed into its first lockdown in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. We’ve taken this opportunity to reflect on all that we achieved in the last 12 months and will also mark the occasion with a minute’s silence at 12pm to remember those we’ve lost.
Louise Shephard, Chief Executive of Alder Hey, says; “Today marks the one year anniversary of the Government announcing a nationwide lockdown. It has been an extraordinary year which we couldn’t possibly have imagined just how big a shadow this virus would come to cast over our lives.
“One of the things that impressed me most is the ‘just do it’ attitude that defined our response. Under incredible pressure, the NHS has been pressed to act: to find solutions to problems; to cut through the usual processes; to ‘think outside of the box’.
“I want to take this opportunity to thank all our colleagues at Alder Hey and throughout the NHS for their incredible resolve over the past year. They have, quite literally, performed miracles to ensure they have kept patients, families and each other safe and well throughout this most extraordinary time.”
David Williams, Spiritual Care Manager at Alder Hey, said: “For me, it’s been a time when we’ve all come to appreciate what is actually so important in our lives, the things we miss so much;
- Not being able to meet with family especially for important dates like birthdays and christenings and, sadly, funerals.
- Not being able to plan holidays or days out, things that we take for granted so much until that freedom is taken away from us.
- Perhaps having nothing to really look forward to, not even to a coffee with a friend or a pint at the weekend.
It’s been a wakeup call for us all, a time when I think we’ve all realised that we’re not as in control of our lives as we thought we were before Covid-19.”