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Lowland Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Association led its first webinar with NHS Scotland to reinforce the collaborative relationship between Defence and the NHS services.
The virtual event informed attendees about Covid-19 and outlined the great progress that has been made with regard to treatment and prevention.
Webinar attendees heard from a number of distinguished guests on Friday 9 October including; Jill Young MBE (Chief Executive of NHS Louisa Jordan), Retired GP, Professor Colville Laird MBE, Pauline Howie OBE (Chief Executive of the Scottish Ambulance Service) and Brigadier Robin Lindsay (Commander of the 51st Infantry Brigade and Army Headquarters Scotland).
From the Defence side of the virtual table, Brigadier Lindsay spoke about his organisation’s efforts to support civil authorities through ‘smart’ mobilisation of Reservists: identifying skillsets relevant to specific tasks, and formally mobilising Reservists with the agreement of their civilian employers.
Attendees also had the opportunity to hear from Jill Young MBE who discussed the creation of Glasgow’s new emergency NHS Louisa Jordan hospital.
Professor Laird gave a detailed outline of the virus itself and the evolution of treatments. He played an active role in setting up reactive services in the early days of the outbreak.
Pauline Howie OBE explained how the Ambulance Service has adapted to the ever-changing Covid-19 situation and is now working to deliver testing services throughout Scotland.
The webinar was concluded with a question and answer session, led by Lowland RFCA’s Chief Executive, Colonel Ted Shields.
Martin Bell, Director of Primary Care and Counter Fraud Services, was one of many who attended and benefited from the webinar. He said:
“I enjoyed hearing the different perspectives of our three contributors. It was food for thought and a good way for the Ministry of Defence and NHS to learn from each other.”
Richard Smith, Health and Wellbeing Officer for NHS Dumfries and Galloway, commented:
“The webinar showed the great skill and dedication from all involved both regular and Reserve Forces. It also showed that in times of need our Forces can be relied on to deliver in a professional and timely fashion and all involved are a credit to our nation.”
So positive was the overall reception of the event, in fact, the organisers are now considering more webinars with themes such as Defence engagement in the engineering, education and finance sectors.
In the face of continuing uncertainties and disruptions to traditional working practices, the success of this NHS/Defence webinar collaboration offers a gleam of light in dark times. By moving online, the webinar allowed colleagues from across the country to congregate safely, and facilitated the maintenance and development of both new and old relationships.
