News

NHS Western Isles has been inundated with incredibly kind donations from across our communities of various items, including monetary donations, hand sanitizers and creams, personal protective equipment, offers of accommodation, vehicles, snacks, and offers of assistance.

We are incredibly grateful for all these donations and are thankful to our local communities for their kindness and thoughtfulness at this difficult time. Each donation means a lot to our staff, who remain at work so you can stay at home.

Our intention as an organisation is to ensure that your kind donations reach the right individuals within NHS Western Isles, including our community staff and support staff such as domestics, porters, catering staff and pharmacy. For this reason, we would ask that any future donations are made through a central point by emailing Colin Gilmour who is coordinating donations colin.gilmour@nhs.net and we will ensure they are fairly distributed.

Should you wish to specify where you would like your donation to go within the organisation, we will of course ensure that your wish is honoured.

Whilst donations are hugely appreciated at this time, NHS Western Isles would also remind members of our community that the main thing our frontline staff need above all else from you is for you to stay at home and follow social distancing rules. This is the one thing you can do to help that will help keep our frontline staff safe and will ultimately protect the local NHS and will save lives.

NHS Western Isles Chief Executive Gordon Jamieson said: “I am lost for words in terms of how generous individuals, businesses and groups have been. Our community has pulled together in an incredible way, and has helped demonstrate to our key workers that we are all in this together and that we are here for one another.

“I would thank each and every organisation and individual who has offered help, assistance and goods to our staff.”

He added: “Clearly, the greatest gift you can give our frontline workers at this time is the gift of health, and we continue to ask you to do this by following government rules, in particular staying at home. By staying at home, you are helping to reduce and slow down the spread of this awful virus and you are protecting our NHS staff and our local healthcare services and without a doubt saving lives. On behalf of our staff, I continue to ask you to stay at home. The safest place for you to be is in your own home. To keep our staff safe, please stay at home. To protect our local community, please stay at home. Thank you.”

www.coronavirus.wi.nhs.scot/