After a period of rapid change, with big announcements every day, things this week have seemed to settle down a bit, as those of us who can stay at home get used to being under a form of lockdown. However, it’s not been a relaxed week at all for those working in our NHS, on the front line against Covid-19. The number of people attending hospital continues to rise as, tragically, does the number of people who have died after contracting the virus.
NHS staff and other key workers such as supermarket and delivery workers are all having to run the added risk of catching this virus in their lines of work. It remains vitally important that we stay home, if not for ourselves but for them. This way, we can avoid people contracting coronavirus and take pressure off the NHS, whilst also saving lives. We owe it to those who are going into work every day in our hospitals, GP surgeries and care homes and I cannot thank them enough for what they are doing.
We are yet to see for sure whether the current restrictions on the way we live our lives is working, of if tougher restrictions will be needed to bring the rate of new infections down. The sooner we can bring it under control, the sooner the Government can begin to relax restrictions and bring things back towards normal. However, this still looks like being some way off and we will have to wait longer if people don’t take every precaution to protect themselves and others
There’s a lot of work me and my team remain involved in, trying to help get Pendle residents home who are stuck overseas and getting the right support for businesses and individuals who have lost their source of income because of the crisis.
A key job is ensuring we get support to those vulnerable people who need help with shopping for food, medication or other tasks they may be unable to do. I welcome Pendle Borough Council’s setting up the Pendle Community Support Hub and have been bowled over by the huge numbers signing up as an NHS Volunteer Responder.
We can get through this crisis by working together to help us all get through this incredibly difficult period.
