Re-uniting families with person-centred virtual visiting | from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde

While visiting is restricted or in many cases suspended, families are being kept apart at times when being able to provide face-to-face comfort is so important.

To enable those patients and families to talk, the NHS board has provided over 250 iPads, so wards across all sites have access to the devices pre-loaded with meeting apps including FaceTime and Skype. The team are planning to ensure that 600 iPads are in wards in total, meaning each ward should have 2 iPads.

This has meant staff are able to arrange patients to 'meet' their loved ones regularly, which is helping greatly to ease the pain of separation.

Chief Nurse Jennifer Rodgers (board’s Professional Lead for Person-Centred Care) says: "In the light of Covid-19 we have had to restrict visiting to the absolute bare minimum, such as patients who are at the end of their lives. For so many of our patients who are used to and enjoy seeing friends and family, this is a particularly lonely time. I am confident that this small step will bring a lot of smiles to a lot of faces in the coming weeks and months."

Staff have noticed that this has improved morale of both staff and patients. The daughter of one patient says: "This has been such a boost for my family and I will always be grateful to the amazing GRI staff."

Sources:
https://twitter.com/RachelKillick/status/1248317597990490114?s=09
https://www.nhsggc.org.uk/about-us/media-centre/news/2020/04/virtual-technology-brings-real-smiles-to-nhsggc-patients/#

Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for Person Centred Virtual Visiting from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde 

Virtual visiting information web page from NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde