Wellbeing in the Anaesthetic Department, Princess of Wales Hospital

At the start of COVID-19, the Anaesthetic Department of Princess of Wales Hospital was given information about what to expect given the information coming out of Italy about the healthcare system being overrun The preparation time was used for resource planning, rota coordinating and a particular focus was placed on staff wellbeing It was recognised early that our greatest asset throughout the pandemic would be staff, but also that staff would be placed in situations outside of their comfort zone under extreme pressures, which could affect their mental health [1] Measures were put in place to improve staff wellbeing, including a wellbeing room (which was a quiet space for use day or night that contained essential items in case staff had to remain at work for longer than expected, such as washing facilities and a freezer with meals), recreational activities such as table football for staff to use to unwind and a coffee room available for informal chats with colleagues These were to help build stronger relationships between staff to strengthen their social network, a well-recognised protective factor against burnout [2] Methods Five months after the initiation of the interventions, a questionnaire was sent to assess their impact and whether they should continue to be used Results Every intervention was used The ability to chat informally with colleagues in the coffee room was used by 94% (Fig 1) The wellbeing room had a moderate-significant impact on 68 75% The interventions had a moderate-significant impact on 87 5%, with 93 33% believing that the interventions should be continued and 93 33% thinking that the wellbeing room specifically should be maintained Further feedback included 'genuinely made life more bearable' and 'really well thought out products in the wellness room which really improved my mental wellbeing' Discussion The responses to the questionnaire were in favour of the interventions and encouraged the ongoing requirement for such interventions within the department There have been suggestions for further interventions, such as having a way of highlighting 'small acts of kindness' or praise on a positivity board, and mindfulness sessions, which can be investigated to see how they could be put into practice and will be re-audited to assess their efficacy This was a small sample (26%) of the department, but it appears to reflect the informal feedback received throughout the process