With a significant change to the football landscape and historic levels of demand on local health services, Leicester City stepped up to enhance the support on offer at Leicester’s Hospitals for patients recovering from serious trauma to those recovering from the effects of COVID-19.
With a roster of highly skilled physiotherapy staff no longer providing the same level of care to the LCFC squad due to the unprecedented break in the football season, Leicester City’s chief executive Susan Whelan, offered the time of nine willing volunteers to help on wards enabling hospital staff to be deployed where they were needed most.
As well as providing the “all hands to deck” approach through the peak of the virus, offering everything from patient support to telephone triaging, the LCFC physiotherapy volunteers enhanced the level of remote recovery support available by developing a suite of patient exercise videos and information. Importantly, the information could be accessed by patients away from hospital meaning patients did not have to attend physiotherapy sessions in person, reducing the risks to both patients and staff.
Laura Meadows, therapy specialty lead at Leicester’s Hospitals said: “We are so grateful to the LCFC Physiotherapy Team for their support during the peak of the COVID-19.
“The development of videos and information to support patients was not only invaluable during a time of extreme pressure from a staff perspective, but their support has enabled us to deliver a necessary service innovation to a high quality, that will continue to benefit patients in the future. We look forward to continuing our working partnership as we further evolve the resources we have created together.”
In addition to providing physiotherapy support during the pandemic, the club also gave the hospitals over £160,000, donated by fans, which will support improvements to the environment of the Kinmonth Unit at Leicester Royal Infirmary. This will have a huge positive impact on patients and staff using the ward and would have otherwise been unaffordable.
Supporting the refurbishment of the Kinmonth Unit adds to the work the Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha Foundation has already undertaken during the COVID-19 pandemic, supporting the community’s immediate response and its work in the future emergence from the crisis.
Rebecca Brown, acting chief executive at Leicester’s Hospitals said: “We were excited to be contacted by LCFC to see how they might be able help support our teams’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to their fantastic practical and financial support the football club’s involvement is a massive boost for all their many fans working in and visiting our hospitals.”
For more information please contact:
Neena Shah, Interim Communications Manager
M: 07932 612414 E: neena.shah@uhl-tr.nhs.uk
