* Glenda Romeo Williams from the
Old Vicarage care team with supplies donated by Greggs.
The Town Council says it is continuing
to support the work of the Llangollen Coronavirus Help Group and following a
request from them has agreed to make a contribution to the purchase of care packs
for individuals who the group has identified as being at home with no funds and
requiring food.
The packs provide enough supplies for
a week and will be supplied to individuals within the Town Council’s geographic
limits, whilst other care services can be accessed.
Help group co-ordinator Cat Mead posted late yesterday: “Lots
of positives today, discussions with our local police who have assured us our
Llangollen Neighbourhood Support Group COVID 19 is fully supported by them, we
are able to continue our volunteer services to the community at this difficult
time, they are also heavily involved in monitoring all activities carried out
by our group.
“All volunteers have been contacted today to check their
situation and reassure on measures going
forward. We have set up a private communications board amongst volunteers, for now
we have enough to continue all support areas, however we will ask if any
further are needed.
“Llangollen Town Council have kindly donated £760 today to assist, £260 has gone to the Foodshare and £500 on care packages
for the elderly and vulnerable, this service has been much appreciated by those
who have received it.
“A kind gesture from the closure of Edinburgh Woollen
Mill saw gifts of shortbread and chocolate distributed to the Health Centre and Pharmacy Staff along with our fantastic posties to say thank you to them
all.
“Medication requests for delivery have excelled today,
our volunteers are working hard to assist, may I ask that you check with the
pharmacy that your prescription is ready prior to placing a request for
delivery.
“Dee Valley Fruit & Veg have had another busy day
serving the town, lots of appreciation, lovely comments and support for our
fantastic team on Oak St.
“Another great volunteer has been working with local
businesses to create a useful food supply leaflet, this will be distributed by
the end of the week, along with Issue 2 of the support group update.
“It was great to see the town empty today (never thought
I would say that) for all the right reasons.
“Please continue to stay at home, don't allow the kids to
gather to go the park or to their friends, it is a community effort to
safeguard us all and ensure this beast has minimal impact on our residents. It
is OK to sit/play in your garden, to walk your dog at distance from others or
take a casual walk, jog, bike ride for exercise, all with precaution and
sensible distancing. Essential shopping only, both Aldi and HB are stocked,
please only go out if it is essential, lots of home delivery services coming in
the next few days.”
Volunteer Paula Lingard
posted: “Mike Connolly has asked me to thank, on his behalf, Edinburgh Woollen
Mill who contacted him yesterday morning and donated their stock of shortbread,
chocolate etc., to the Support Group and it was in turn divided equally between
the Pharmacy, Health Centre and posties.”
* Goodies donated by Edinburgh Woollen Mill to the support group for key workers.
One of the town’s major food outlets has introduced a new
measure to ensure queuing customers stay at a safe distance from the tills.
The store posted on Facebook yesterday: “To our customers
at Co-op Llangollen as part of social distancing we would appreciate it if you
could stay behind the tape we have put by tills. This is not just for our
protection but also yours thank you from all of us at co-op.”
 |
* The customer safety line at the Co-op tills.
Picture taken by the Co-op staff. |
Generous gestures continued, including one mentioned
by the Old Vicarage care home: “Many thanks to Greggs for donating fresh food
and milk for the residents of the Old Vicarage today.”
From the Co-op
nationally came this message yesterday: “From tonight our stores will be
closing earlier than usual to give our colleagues a chance to replenish our
shelves as well as giving them a well-needed rest. Monday to Saturday we'll
close at 8pm, normal trading hours will be in place on Sunday. For more
information head to https://coop.uk/3doWPgc #FoodHeroes #FeedingTheNation”
Bowen Son and Watson estate agents in Castle Street had
stayed open a little longer than most shops but yesterday bowed to the
inevitable.
The team there posted yesterday: “In light of the recent
announcement by the Prime Minister we wish to provide you with our latest
update. As per Government guidelines our offices will now close from 24 March
for a period of three weeks and we have made arrangements to be able to provide
service levels to you by key staff members.
"In the first instance please email the office with your
query & contact details and a member of staff will return to you. Our
details can be found on the 'contact us' page of our website:
bowensonandwatson.co.uk"
But, as it performs an essential duty, the Blue Bay Launderette
announced it was staying open when it posted: “Just a reminder. We're open
tomorrow (Wednesday) for you to catch up on your laundry 9am - 5pm. If you
require us to collect your laundry please ring 01978 869227. It would be much
appreciated if you could pay by card. Hope everyone is keeping well.”
The fortnightly kerbside collection of textile bags
issued by local charity Co-options has been suspended until further notice.
A note from the charity explained: “It is not possible at
this time to sort the textiles safely and the employees operating this service
will be remaining at home in line with government guidance as it is not
considered critical at this time.
“Co-options textile banks should NOT be used at this time
as this is NOT a legitimate reason to leave your home.
“Please try to keep good quality clothing to one side so
it can be collected once restrictions are lifted.”
This service usually operates in north and central
Denbighshire.
A video conferencing facility normally used
to train and share best practice is being used to help reinforce key messages
for palliative care professionals during the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic.
Wales’ only ECHO learning hub is set up at
Nightingale House Hospice in Wrexham where it is normally used to offer
training and share knowledge remotely for health and social care professionals
working in isolation.
It brings together groups of practitioners to
enable them to find solutions and share best practice. It means in these times
of great strain on health and social care services we can learn from each other
and not duplicate important aspects of work. It also provides a means of
supporting staff in a variety of care settings in these challenging times.
The original intention of the ECHO
model is to reduce isolation and improve access
to case based learning and education for health and social care professionals.
The impact the Coronavirus is having on the health care sector means it is
proving invaluable in connecting with those who need to be kept up to date in a
timely and coordinated fashion.
Hospice UK is hosting weekly ECHO sessions,
which Nightingale House Hospice is taking part, to link over 230 palliative
care health professionals from hospices, hospitals and community teams, to
discuss issues and concerns or share best practice and innovative ways of
service delivery.
Nightingale House’s ECHO hub has enabled some
of the BCUHB palliative care team members to link to the national resource
along with our own hospice team, cutting down the impact of face to face
contact and reducing the time health professionals are away from their work.
Tracy Livingstone, Head of Governance and
Education at Nightingale House, said: “We have already seen the benefits of
connecting with key health and social care workers for training purposes but
now the benefits of the ECHO suite has come into its’ own. We have joined
forces with the palliative care teams at BCUHB to keep in touch during this unprecedented
time.
“Moving forward ECHO will be held up as an
excellent example of the benefits this type of communication can bring during a
national crisis but also maintaining staff education and competence in practice
in rural isolated communities, of which we have many within our catchment area.
In Northern Ireland the Health and Social Care Board already commissions the
services of the HUB in Belfast for professional education of isolated
practitioners and already sees how big an impact its’ reach can have in those
areas that could get forgotten about in the bigger picture.”
