Further call for engineering volunteers to support the NHS across the UK

The Royal Academy of Engineering has written to the BCIA asking for our continuing support in tackling the COVID-19 pandemic.

In her email, Claire Donovan, Senior Profession Relationship Manager, Royal Academy of Engineering says: “As you are aware there are a number of new medical facilities being built across the UK to treat patients with COVID-19, and existing facilities are increasing capacity in specialist areas. Following the previous call for support in London, Manchester, and Birmingham, the call is now reissued and extended across the UK, in preparation for if they should need auxiliary support in the coming weeks.

“Under normal operations, engineers and technicians work quietly in the background. With such unprecedented circumstances before us, this is no-longer the case. The effective delivery of clinical care will only be achieved if engineers and technicians work alongside their clinical counterparts.

“We have again been approached by NHS England to look at the possibility of engaging our colleagues across the PEIs to ask for volunteers to help with a range of engineering requirements that will enable them to continue to deliver frontline services, this time across all regions and nations.

“Again, time is of the essence and it is likely that we will need volunteers on site and in the regional hospitals within the week, if not within the next few days. We would therefore ask if you could circulate the enclosed updated letter to your members, along with the job description within the next 24 hours. If you were able to circulate the previous call, perhaps you could draw your members’ attention to the fact that this is UK-wide,preparatory for demand to increase across the country, not just at the three new field hospitals. We, and NHS England, thank you for your continuing commitment to our profession and all that it stands for, in these extraordinary times.”

Further information is available here

A full job description can be downloaded here

Within the letter is a link to a form which the volunteers must complete to enable The Royal Academy of Engineering to database their offer. The Royal Academy of Engineering has agreed to maintain this database but selection will be made by the NHS Team based on need.