West Suffolk logo (1)

Mental wellbeing apps and resources

  • Guided meditation and mindfulness app, ‘Headspace’, is offering free membership to all NHS staff until the end of the year. Enrol here – it’s got some great workouts too.
  • ‘Unmind’ is giving free access to NHS staff, which helps you to assess, track, and understand your mental wellbeing over time.
  • The Happy MD, with physician self-care tools in the time of coronavirus
  • The Happiness Lab, with episodes on how to combat social isolation with Dr Jamil Zaki from Stanford University, as well as an episode on how to make rational decisions in a time of anxiety with Dr. Ethan Kross from the University of Michigan
  • Wellbeing for healthcare workers during COVID-19, by Dr Linda Dykes, consultant in emergency medicine and GP
  • Live Life to the Full Suffolk, which has helpful tips for you, your family and even your neighbours who might become isolated. It’s even got a handy mood quiz.
  • Suffolk MIND, with resources to help you look after your mental health.
  • SilverCloud Health is a digital mental health company with a range of online programmes that help to ease your levels of stress and maintain a healthy mind during this challenging time. The programmes use proven methods including, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and positive psychology. Use access code: NHS2020
  • Sleepio and Daylight are both free for NHS staff until 31 December:

Sleepio is a clinically-evidenced sleep improvement programme that is fully automated and highly personalised, using cognitive behavioural techniques to help improve poor sleep. Sign up with code NHS2020, complete the sleep test, and get started!

Daylight is a smartphone-based app that provides help to people experiencing symptoms of worry and anxiety, using evidence-based cognitive behavioural techniques, voice and animation. 

 

 

BITESIZE VIDEOS ON PSYCHOLOGICAL MATTERS

Dr Ellie Atkins, a clinical psychologist at St George's Hospital, Tooting, has shared a series of bitesize videos for NHS staff to support your wellbeing during the coronavirus pandemic.

Below you can check out her videos on:

 

OTHER EXTERNAL RESOURCES 

 

MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING SUPPORT FOR BAME COMMUNITIES

Liberate Meditation have partnered with the NHS to provide staff free access to their meditation and mindfulness app. The app offers culturally sensitive and diverse meditations, curated for the BAME community, by the BAME community, aiming to reduce anxiety, alleviate stress and promote rest.

How NHS staff can access the resource:

All NHS staff have access to this resource via the NHS People site (https://people.nhs.uk/help/support-apps/liberate-meditation/).  

 

 

Change to covid-19 swabbing for staff and family

Since the start of the pandemic, the NHS has built a significant testing operation that includes walk-in and drive through test sites and at home testing. It has also invested in large-scale laboratories that can process and analyse swabs at scale and speed.

As a result, from November 1 we are making some changes to our approach to in-house PCR testing.We will no longer routinely offer Covid-19 PCR tests for staff or their families with suspected symptoms, or who have been identified as potential contacts of someone with Covid away from work. Instead, staff should use their nearest NHS testing centre - you can book online or by calling 119.

We will no longer operate the current testing pods near the Emergency Department at West Suffolk Hospital. We will continue to swab and test patients, and we will also offer PCR tests to staff in the event of a suspected outbreak at work. These changes will help us focus on patient testing to help with capacity across our services, and will often mean faster turnaround for staff results by taking advantage of national laboratory capacity. Staff will also be able to more easily register their results in the NHS Covid App.

NATIONAL INFORMATION AND ADVICE

National information and advice on the UK’s COVID-19 response is available on the NHS website. Visit the gov.uk website for the latest national guidance.