NHS staff in Essex transformed an unused ward in Brentwood Community Hospital in just one week to provide recovery care for COVID-19 patients.

Teams in North East London NHS Foundation Trust (NELFT) worked tirelessly in already challenging circumstances to create the new ward in the Essex hospital to create 19 new beds to support acute hospitals in the area.

Patients who have contracted COVID-19 who no longer need acute care, but still require medical support and care, are transferred to our recovery and rehabilitation wards, which now includes the new Courage Ward at Brentwood Community Hospital. The 19 new beds join the more than 70 extra beds that have been created at Brentwood since the start of the pandemic, and mean NHS staff at acute hospitals can care for more seriously ill patients.

Julie Hoare, Project Director, NELFT, said: “We set up a third ward to take patients that no longer need acute care in hospital, but still need some nursing and medical care. Patients will be discharged from hospital and be cared for by the amazing staff we have here at Brentwood.”

Dominic Ward, Assistant Director for Frailty and Immediate Care, NELFT, said: “The new ward will help get patients out of hospital sooner so we can support them in a community setting local to them and get them discharged safely. The team have worked extremely hard to get the wards set up and running as quick as we possibly can.”

Brid Johnson, Director of Operations (Essex and Kent), said “We are in an extremely pressured time but our teams in Essex, once again, stepped up to the challenge and went above and beyond to provide care and support for our patients.

“In the last 10 months they have transformed unused wards, created new wards and provided just under 100 extra recovery beds so patients can leave hospital sooner and receive community care closer to their homes.”