King’s College Hospital Charity has sent out an urgent ‘SOS’ appeal for donations to help exhausted staff who are battling the second wave of COVID-19.
The trust’s hospitals, including King’s in Denmark Hill and Bromley’s Princess Royal, saw an incredible 600 per cent rise in COVID-19 admissions in three weeks over the festive period and are treating, right now, more than 750 in-patients with the virus.
It is a critical point for the hospitals. As the News has reported, King’s is close to being ‘completely full’, with limited capacity in intensive care, leading to some urgent cancer surgeries being postponed.
“We have more patients now that we did at the peak of the pandemic last year,” said Dr Tom Best MBE, the hospital’s clinical director of critical care.
“This is truly unprecedented. Now, as we stand on the frontline of the second surge, still exhausted from the first, we need your support more than ever.”
Funds from the SOS Appeal pay for immediate, practical help for frontline staff working incredibly long hours in full PPE – from providing food and toiletries, fresh changes of clothes, and giving emotional support and bereavement services.
Charity chief executive, Gail Scott-Spicer, added: “The care provided by staff throughout the hospitals is extraordinary and it is a privilege to be able to help them and to act as a means for our local communities to be able to express their support through their donations.
“We are able to translate this generosity into practical help whether that be through snacks, refreshments and toiletries to keep staff going through long, tough shifts or through funding bereavement counselling for both patients and staff who have lost loved ones during these difficult times.”
To donate, visit: https://supportkings.org.uk/SOS