Staff at Preston North End were given life support education by a local hospital Trust as a thank you for allowing their staff to use Deepdale facilities to give essential training to NHS staff during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since the beginning of Covid-19, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust have been recruiting more staff to help with the ongoing efforts and demands that come with the pandemic. One of the most important aspects of recruiting this staff is holding inductions and life-saving training with large numbers of staff while considering social distancing.
The club have worked closely with the training team after granting permission to use the function rooms at Deepdale free of charge, and this has ensured that the Trust could give staff vital training while allowing enough space for the two metre social distancing requirements. In total around 840 staff have been trained using the facilities at Deepdale so far.
As well providing the rooms for the training, the club were also able to assist in laundering items between training sessions to ensure the safest possible environment for all staff.
Mark Wardman, Education, Training and Professional Development Manager, said: “During Covid-19, using Deepdale’s facilities, we completed over 139 courses, training 840 staff. It’s a truly amazing achievement that couldn’t have been done without Preston North End and Heathcotes’ help.”
Staff at Deepdale and their catering partner Heathcote&Co Deepdale were offered life support training and 12 members of backroom staff took part on Tuesday 14th July, including PNE Chief Executive John Kay and general manager of Heathcote&Co Deepdale David Cura.
The training has provided the Lilywhites’ staff with vital skills and knowledge including how to help someone choking, the recovery position, Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), Automated External Defibrillation (the use of public defibrillators) and DRSABCD (Danger, Response, Send for help, Airway, Breathing, Cardiopulmonary resuscitation) in both adults and children. This included new Covid-19 specific CPR training to help stop the spread of the virus.
A spokesperson on behalf of Preston North End said: “Offering the facilities at Deepdale to the incredible NHS staff was the least we could during the challenging times of the Covid-19 pandemic and it has been fantastic for us to be able to help the Trust deliver this essential training.
"It was a very generous offer to allow members of staff from both the football club and our caterers to receive life support training which will be invaluable to them, not only as individuals but also to all those attending events at Deepdale and in the wider community.
"As a club we are very grateful for the training received and it has been a pleasure to work alongside the Trust throughout this difficult period.”