NHS Confederation annual debate: Managing mental health and wellbeing in the aftermath of COVID-19
While the ongoing threat from the pandemic is being managed, we know the thoughts of many leaders in the health service are turning to how the recovery phase will need to be approached. The NHS will enter this period facing a large backlog of care, expecting a surge in demand for mental health services, and with an exhausted workforce who will need time to decompress.
We cannot afford to slip back into ‘business as usual’ without understanding the physical and psychological impact of the pandemic on healthcare staff. We will need to put supportive measures in place to fully support staff during the recovery phase.
Our annual debate and lecture on 11 March focused on staff health and wellbeing as we begin to recover from the pandemic and learn to work alongside the virus for months to come. Our guest speaker was Professor Neil Greenberg, who recently led a study for King’s College London on the psychological impact the pandemic is having on intensive care staff working in the NHS, and was interviewed by journalist and broadcaster Isabel Hardman.
Watch the recording back:
