The Met Police’s first “wellbeing dog” has visited a busy south-east London hospital to help NHS workers relax in their downtime from battling the Covid-19 crisis, writes Kit Heren…
Black labrador Dexter, accompanied by his handler PC Sheather, went to University Hospital Lewisham last Wednesday. The aim of the visit was to help staff take a step back and unwind during their busy shifts.
PC Sheather usually takes Dexter to visit other police officers, but after the NHS declared a “major incident” earlier this year, police decided that he could help healthcare staff as well. Dexter has already visited Homerton hospital and the Royal London hospital in east London.
PC Sheather, from the Met’s Taskforce, said: “I think people underestimate the comfort that our four-legged friends can provide and Dexter is proving an extremely invaluable presence to those who may be in need of that comfort.
“Having helped so many people in the Met, we decided to take Dexter further afield. It’s been a tough year for all of those working in emergency services and NHS staff have been putting their health and wellbeing before others throughout.
“This is a very simple way we can give back to the brilliant staff at UHL and all the other hospitals. Hopefully all those who meet Dexter will have had a smile on their face and some time to decompress if they are having a stressful day.”
Meera Nair, chief people officer at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, thanked the Met for Dexter’s visit.
“We have been very focused on making sure there is a wide range staff support in place since the start of the pandemic and these wellbeing visits are great for giving our hard-working staff a chance to relax and reset,” she added.
The Met taskforce’s mounted branch also visited the hospital, meaning staff were able to greet the police horses.