The coronavirus has created challenging and uncertain times, as we’ve been asked to change our routines and how we take care of ourselves and our families.
For many of you, these challenges are even greater; working in unfamiliar environments, with reduced staffing levels, and learning new skills. This is on top of the worry about your own and your family’s health and wellbeing.
Greater Manchester Resilience Hub is providing wellbeing screening and support. We want our offer to best meet your and your colleague's needs, so please share your ideas with us by answering this four question survey.
Click the drop-down menus below to see what support is available for you, or to read more about the wellbeing screening programme:
These resources aim to support anyone. Please click the drop-down menus below for more information relevant to your role.
Resources and advice
National NHS staff wellbeing helpline
NHS England have launched a new mental health hotline for NHS staff of all roles and levels.
The phone number is running from 7am to 11pm daily: 0300 131 7000
Or you can text FRONTLINE to 85258 (available 24/7).
Volunteers are on hand to listen to you and give psychological support, advice on coaching, bereavement care, mental health and financial help.
NHS practitioner health events
This has a calendar of upcoming wellbeing events, including webinars, meetings, podcasts and more. Click here to see what's coming up.
Facilitated peer support sessions will provide an opportunity to come together with people who have similar experiences.
They provide a safe online space to give support to staff during this period of increased psychological stress and worry.
The content of each session is dependent on attendees, but is likely to focus on work-related experiences, common themes, stresses and dilemmas.
Click here for more information.
Upcoming sessions
Details of our upcoming peer support spaces can be found below, to book a place please email GM.help@nhs.net.
Additionally, get in touch if you feel your team could benefit from such an offer and you don’t see an appropriate space already.
There are also a range of national common rooms available to NHS staff. Click here to view a calendar of these.
This information can help if you manage or lead other key health and care workers during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic:
If you're concerned about a staff member
As a manager, you can make a referral to us if you're concered that covid-19 has affected, or is affecting, the emotional wellbeing of someone in your team (any role, including cleaners, porters, medics, nurses, students etc.).
Simply complete this word document and email it securely to GM.help@nhs.net, or call us on 03330 095 071.
Anyone reffered in will be booked in for a call with one of the team. Staff can contact the Hub themselves directly, but support from their manager can help.
Resilience Hub resources
Resilience Hub webinars - care home staff
These are designed for care home managers and owners, to help you support the wellbeing of your staff. Click here for more info.
#Caring4NHSPeople wellbeing webinars
These are designed for people in workforce, occupational health, organisational development, leadership, trade union support, or any other area that is supporting the wellbeing of NHS colleagues. Click here for more information.
This information can support black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) essential health and care workers:
New Covid-19 support line for BAME communities
A new service for black, Asian and minority communities has launched across Greater Manchester. The service is provided by Nestac, a charity specialising in cross-culture emotional support.
You can call or text ‘HELP’ to 07862 279289 or 07894 126157.
BAME mental health support service
The Manchester BME Network CIC aims to support BAME groups and organisations of all sizes, to become more effective, successful and to play their full part in contributing to communities in Manchester. They provide a culturally appropriate mental health support service for BAME individuals, predominately of south Asian ethnic background (but not exclusive to), recovering from and affected by covid-19. Click here for info.
Jewish mental health support
This is a partnership between Jewish Action for Mental Health (JAMH) and Neshomo. JAMH want to increase awareness of mental illness in the Jewish community, and offer practical guidance in identifying signs of acute psychological distress.
Greater Manchester Neshomo is a Jewish, culturally sensitive, confidential mental health charity for adults. They are offering befriending, mentoring, counselling and therapy to those whose mental health has been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Click here for JAMH or click here for Neshomo.
Caribbean and African Health Network (CAHN)
CAHN is providing a bespoke mental health service for the Caribbean and African community. This includes online access to trained counsellors, along with volunteers who can help to reduce social isolation. Click here for info.
Chinese mental health support (Wai Yin)
Wai Yin have developed a support group for Chinese men and women with mental distress and difficulties relating to a range of socio-cultural issues. They aim to provide professional support which tailors to different complex issues of mental health, sociocultural and financial difficulties. Click here for more info.
Training and support for services and exiles (TS4SE)
This cooperative works with refugee and migrant community groups, and local community groups who want to improve how they work with their diverse local populations.
TS4SE are now providing regular briefings and train-the-trainer sessions, gathering user stories, and researching and developing sustainable new models of working remotely - or in person with social distancing.
They are also supporting smaller refugee-led community organisations, to develop remote befriending for isolated individuals, focusing on culturally specific health promotion and wellbeing messages. Click here for more info.
Yaran Northwest
Yaran Northwest is not-for-profit organisation providing a variety of services to meet the needs of vulnerable adults, new immigrants, families and couples in Greater Manchester; who need urgent help with counselling, advocacy, recovery and wellbeing.
They are providing bilingual accredited mental health practitioners and a bilingual befriending mentor, who will provide online sessions. Click here for info.
This information can support you if you are a parent or carer, as well as being an essential health and care worker:
Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership
Other resources
Here are some things that can support you if you've been affected by bereavement due to COVID-19:
Greater Manchester Bereavement service: 0161 983 0902
This is available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm (until 8pm on Wednesday), except bank holidays.
Click here the visit their website.
National bereavement and loss support line: 0300 303 4434
This is available from 7am -11pm, seven days a week.
Death and grieving in a care home
This guide has advice to support you, care home residents and their families. Click here to download a copy.
Our confidential wellbeing screening is being targeted at health and wellbeing staff, and their family members (even if the staff member doesn't want to complete it for themselves).
Once you've completed the screening, you'll get chance to speak to one of our team in more detail about how things are.
We can talk to you about advice and support available, access to therapy, other useful services, helpful resources, or drawing up wellbeing plans.
The screening can also be completed over the phone with a member of the team if you prefer.
Click here to visit our screening page.
Confidentiality
Any information you provide remains confidential, but should you indicate risk towards yourself or others, particularly a child or vulnerable adult, or that there is illegal activity taking place, we may need to explore the circumstances further with you. The wellbeing screening does not ask for your employer's details.
Our staff are trained mental health professionals, who are experts at working with people who have experienced traumatic and distressing events.
Manchester Resilience Hub is hosted by Pennine Care, and is a collaboration between the four NHS mental health providers in Greater Manchester (the other three are: Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, and Northwest Boroughs Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust).
The Hub is supported and funded by the Greater Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Partnership.
More information is also available in our monthly briefings:
Webinars
We've created a number of webinars, available to watch anytime, to share learning or helpful information. Click here for our webinars page.
You can us contact by:
Phone: 03330 095 071
Email: GM.help@nhs.net
We are open:
If we can't answer your calls immediately, please leave a message and we will call you back as soon as we can. We want to do all we can to support you through these very difficult times.
