Exceptional Support and Delivery by a Consultant During COVID-19
I love consulting because I get to see the direct impact my work makes when solving meaningful problems for important organisations in the UK.
When the Covid-19 pandemic hit last year, I did not anticipate the unprecedented impact it would have on my life and those of everyone around me. The UK Government, our NHS and businesses across the country faced new challenges in responding to the virus, which was a call to arms for consultants like me to help these critical organisations manage, adapt and innovate through the crisis.
I was involved with NHS Digital on another project and when the pandemic closed in on our shores, the Director of Networks and Infrastructure asked me to help stand up the Access Logistics Hub, which sought to connect health workers with services needed during the outbreak.
I was instrumental to NHS Digital’s response to the initial Covid-19 pandemic in the following areas:
- Managed the delivery of critical network connectivity to seven Nightingale field hospitals, completing works with providers in hours instead of months.
- Assured elements of the critical NHS IT infrastructure to ensure stability through significant shifts in ways of working with a rapid transition to digital services, such as extensive remote working.
- Led the analysis and delivery of improved Internet connections for patients in NHS and Social Care locations to enable remote video consultation with doctors and enable communication between families during lockdown, reducing the spread of the virus.
- Rolled out remote access solutions to provide secure access to healthcare systems, supporting the increased remote working of clinicians across the healthcare sector, from GPs to Radiologists in a system of 1.2 million staff.