A community nursing team has been given a new 4×4 to help deliver care to patients living in remote areas.
Funded by South Tees Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, the new vehicle is helping to improve care access across the rural community.
Related Article: Primary care and community nurses ‘treated as second class citizens’
The 4×4 contains a large boot to carry medical equipment and also has the ability to navigate farm tracks and off-track terrains, allowing the nursing team to reach patients who may otherwise struggle to access care.
Maria Hubbuck, specialist practitioner in district nursing at Leyburn District Nursing Team, said challenging weather conditions make it especially tough to care for patients in rural areas over winter.
Related Article: Thousands of delayed discharge days due to care home placement waits
Before being given the 4×4, the community nursing team struggled to reach certain homes, especially where roads were poorly maintained, or on steep hillsides.
‘This vehicle will allow us to reach patients we previously struggled to access during severe weather. And those patients that live in our most rural areas,’ Ms Hubbuck said.
She added the team are excited to put the vehicle to good use, and ‘confident that it will prove invaluable in delivering care to those most in need’.
Related Article: ‘Urgent’ community nursing investment needed to fix corridor care crisis
The vehicle will be used by multiple teams across Hambleton and Richmondshire.
