by Sarah Waddington
When I penned the introduction to the third edition of #FuturePRoof: ‘The NHS at 70 with lessons for the wider PR community’, I opened with a thank you to the remarkable people who work within it.
This book, ‘The impact of COVID-19 on NHS comms’, has only reinforced that debt of gratitude. Two chapters made me cry; all of them have given me hope for the future. Thank you all, for everything you do.
Little did I know when I wrote about the myriad of challenges facing the NHS, that less than two years later (it’s now November 2020), it would also be providing the first line of defence against a hugely infectious disease known as COVID-19.
Right now, as a second wave of Coronavirus sweeps the UK, its world class staff continue to work all hours to protect us, against a backdrop of long-term underfunding, challenges with the availability of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), a poorly implemented Test and Trace system and a burgeoning mental health crisis.
Working right alongside those frontline staff are its professional communicators who are also keeping the wheels turning with the critical objective of keeping everyone safe.
These inspiring professionals are prioritising internal communications so staff feel listened to, valued and informed; and engaging with patients and wider community, with a focus on our most vulnerable. They are liaising with media to give them access to the data and the stories they need; and working with Government to find solutions to the complex challenges the pandemic presents.
NHS comms teams have been central to the crisis response and their value has been seen and felt like never before. This is right and just and a huge boon for our profession. The strategic role of the NHS communicator now very firmly occupies a seat in the NHS boardroom.
Through its response to COVID-19, the NHS has been able to throw off many of the shackles that were holding it back, stopping it innovating and slowing its progress.
Its transformation to digital-first has revolutionised patient care and engagement, while keeping safety and privacy at its core. Many of the obstacles covered in book three have been overcome in the shortest space of time, driven by necessity.
Today we can all benefit from technology that enables home-based online consultations and self-care, and apps designed to help with prevention rather than cure.
NHS Providers has finally given the workforce a voice, where before it had none. An entrepreneurial approach has seen trusts launch their own PPE manufacturing units and multi-agency working has been implemented in the knowledge that no one organisation can fight this terrible illness and its ramifications alone.
It’s a story of strength and empowerment that inspires and it gives me no surprise that public confidence in the NHS continues to rise as it demonstrably lives its values. The whole NHS workforce deserves our continued advocacy and support. It will need this as it continues to address issues around under investment, understaffing, mental health and wellbeing and this long overdue system overhaul.
I’d like to say how grateful I am to all the amazing contributors in this book who somehow in the midst of a global pandemic found the time to write and capture a unique moment in the NHS’s lifetime.
Particular thanks go to Adam Brimelow, Claire Riley, Lisa Ward, Liz Davies and Ross Wigham who opened access to their networks to make this a reality.
This book, like its 70th anniversary counterpart, marks an important stage in the NHS’s history and evolution. This complex network of organisations stands as a beacon of hope in these difficult times and offers a reminder that while communications may have previously been the invisible thread connecting organisations with their workforces, stakeholders and communities, it is invisible no longer.
On behalf of everyone who reads this book, I’ll say it one more time and loudly.
THANK YOU FOR BEING THERE FOR US, OUR BELOVED NHS.
Sarah Waddington is an experienced management and PR consultant helping organisations to articulate their purpose and optimise performance through her agency Astute.Work.
A pioneer of best practice, she was awarded the CIPR’s Sir Stephen Tallents Medal for exceptional achievement in public relations and is the winner of the PRCA’s Outstanding Contribution in Digital Award.
Having built a reputation as an ethics tsar and diversity and inclusivity champion, she is a strong advocate of accountable leadership and women in business and believes in helping young talent break through.
Sarah is a Past President of the CIPR, an IoD Ambassador, a member of the Northern Power Women Power List and is a regular speaker at industry events. Her PR-related blog is one of the top ten in the UK according to Vuelio.
The founder and editor of #FuturePRoof, a series of books and community aimed at reasserting the role of public relations as a management function, Sarah also co-edited a white paper with Stephen Waddington characterising the public relations agency business and another exploring the mental wellbeing of the profession.
Sarah is a graduate of Oxford Saïd’s Executive Leadership programme, has completed Non Executive Director training with NEDA at the London Stock Exchange and holds a certificate in Organisational Leadership from the Institute of Leadership and Management. She has an MA in Marketing from Northumbria University, a BA (Hons) in French and Media from Leeds University and is a Google Squared digital marketing alumna.
When she’s not at work you’ll find her busy being Mum to two boys and walking her cocker spaniel Madge. You can also catch her being rather noisy on Twitter @Mrs_Wadds.
Twitter: @Mrs_Wadds
Web: Astute.Work