Hospital bosses are gearing up to tackle a second surge in Covid-19 cases in the coming months – and boost resilience and wellbeing for staff who have worked through an intense year.

Tributes were paid to the dedication and hard work of staff at Royal Stoke and Stafford's County Hospital at the annual meeting of University Hospitals of North Midlands (UHNM) NHS Trust, which runs both sites.

Chief executive Tracy Bullock said: "I want to say a big thank you to our incredible staff – I have never seen anything like it in 36 years in the NHS. Our staff have stepped up to the plate without even being asked.

"They've redesigned the way we deliver services. They've been incredibly flexible in terms of the shift patterns they've worked, making sure we have cover 24/7, seven days a week, during the most intense period I've ever known in the NHS."

Wednesday's meeting was held virtually for the first time, with board members giving an account of the trust's performance during 2019/20 in pre-recorded videos, followed by a live question and answer session streamed online.

While achievements including the trust's financial turnaround were highlighted, the challenges faced during the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic also proved a talking point.

Admin staff were trained to assist in patient areas and 325 students also stepped into the breach.

Staff continued to care for the most urgent heart, stroke and cancer patients – as well as keeping A&E and major trauma services open – while those with Covid-19 were being treated. And more than 2,000 cancer operations were carried out using the independent sector.

There have been 355 Coronavirus-related deaths across the hospitals since the start of the pandemic. But a further 753 patients were discharged – and last week a newsletter circulated to staff revealed there were no 'current Covid patients' at either Royal Stoke or County Hospital.

The trust is bracing itself for a second wave of cases however – and making the wellbeing of staff a priority as they work through the coming months.

Wellbeing support has been provided throughout the Covid-19 crisis and more than 287 staff members have accessed services so far.

Mrs Bullock said: "This winter will be very different. Not only will we have the usual seasonal pressures of patients coming in with illnesses such as respiratory conditions, we will have our usual seasonal flu as well and on top of that we have got to plan for the potential of a resurgence of Covid.

"What we know is many of those seasonal respiratory conditions and flu will have symptoms that are very similar to Covid and that will present a challenge to all organisations within the NHS.

"Children have gone back to school and adults have gone back to work, so people have more contact with each other. We have planned to see an increase in Covid-positive people in our community, linked to an increase in the number of people that come into hospital.

"We know how to manage a Covid surge now – it's included as part of our winter planning. We have already zoned our hospitals for each category of patient."

All staff are now undergoing risk assessments, the meeting heard, to make sure their individual needs can be met and there are areas they can work where full personal protective equipment (PPE) is not required.

Mrs Bullock said: "One thing we are going to introduce over 2020/21 is a new quality improvement movement, about putting our staff and patients right at the centre, making sure our staff are developed and making sure their wellbeing is our number one priority.

"By looking after the staff we are by default putting our patients first, because we know there is lots of research out there that clearly demonstrates that happy staff equals happy patients. Good teamwork equals better outcomes for our patients.

"We know, given what our staff have been through over the previous few months, resilience and wellbeing is dropping so what we want to do is make sure we build that up again. We can do much of that by engaging and developing our staff."