Wigan's NHS Trust 'cautiously' resumes major operations that were postponed due to coronavirus

The response comes weeks after the hospital was dedicated entirely to fighting the pandemic.

Life, limb and sight-saving procedures which had been postponed indefinitely due to the virus outbreak are “cautiously” being resumed at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh (WWL) NHS Trust, with work already under way to contact patients who have been waiting for such operations.

Dr Sanjay Arya, WWL’s medical director, said the move had been possible thanks to the borough’s NHS workers’ dedication, residents following the government’s social distancing guidelines, and Wigan Infirmary’s new modular ward easing patient congestion.

“We have now started, very cautiously, to look at other categories of patients whose lives, limbs or sight are at risk,” said Dr Arya.

“We are very careful that we provide safe surgery for these patients, and that we provide this in the right environment, because it is very important that we do not expose these patients to the risk of coronavirus.

“Some of these patients who we will be bringing in for these procedures may be advised to isolate themselves for two weeks prior to having the procedure. But this will be on an individual basis, depending on what procedures they need to undertake. My plea to my patients, and the people of Wigan, is to follow the advice of the healthcare professionals. We care for you and care for your safety, we do not want you to be brought to hospital if there may be a risk of harm instead of good.”

Dr Arya said the procedures would be reintroduced “very slowly and carefully” to avoid bringing too many people into the hospital at once.

“We don’t want to expose our patients to unnecessary risk,” he said.

“We will be contacting patients if it is appropriate to come in for an operation.

“We have now made sure that all consultants are reviewing patients on the waiting list to see if they need an urgent operation. We have the benefit of being a multi-site hospital, so we are trying to make certain areas like Leigh Infirmary, the Thomas Linacre Centre and Wrightington Hospital, into “green areas”, where we are taking non-covid patients awaiting procedures and operations.

“We have already started this process. Patients have been contacted and arrangements are being made in the relevant departments to safely bring in these patients. And for others awaiting other types of surgery, consultants will be contacting them and assessing the needs of their operation.”

Dr Arya said the pandemic had been “an awful experience” for all involved, but praised his NHS colleagues for adapting to new ways of treating patients.

He said: “We have learned something through utilising technology. At no time did we stop caring for patients. Specialists have been contacting patients by phone, through video, through Skype, and the care has continued through telecoms rather than face-to-face.

“This way, we have made sure our patients do not have to come out of their own home, and thereby follow lockdown rules. It has prevented them getting an infection, either from people sat next to them or healthcare workers themselves. These patients have felt very reassured that they were not forgotten amidst Covid-19.

“I want to thank the people of Wigan, because the number of patients coming to us who are Covid positive is coming down. That is largely because, even though the lockdown is being eased, people are maintaining social distancing. People have been vigilant and have been following the rules that the government has asked us to follow. It is only because of this that the number of Covid-19 patients coming to our hospital is coming down, and the number of patients requiring intensive care is also going down.”

He added: “Thanks to the people of Wigan borough who have followed the government guidelines very patiently, we have control of the number of coronavirus patients. Our frontline staff, nurses, doctors, therapists and managers have worked tirelessly in making sure our patients are kept safe.”

Another key to WWL’s efforts has been the opening of Bryn Ward, a modular unit built in Wigan Infirmary’s car park, which opened at the start of May. The ward has more than 50 beds dedicated to critical care.

“We are really delighted with the provision of our new modular ward. Without it there would have been a lot of congestion in the hospital, and there would have been a risk of increasing infections,” said Dr Arya.

“The 50 beds on the ward have helped us make sure no ward is at more than 80 per cent capacity, as has been advised by the department of health. It has been of great help to the people of Wigan in managing patient flow and restricting cross-infection.

“The hospital is doing everything to segregate coronavirus patients, so that patients with a non-covid illness can be managed separately and safely.”