South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust (STSFT) is preparing for the Easter weekend, with Bank Holidays always a busy time.

It is also getting ready for six days of industrial action by the British Medical Association (BMA), which has announced resident doctors will strike. The action will run after the Bank Holiday weekend, from 7am on Tuesday, April 7, until just before 7am on Monday, April 13.

The Trust is making plans to make sure safe care continues to be offered while industrial action takes place.

It is also urging people to get ready for  the Easter Bank Holiday by making sure they have enough prescription medication and a well-stocked medicine cupboard, when there will be reduced access to GP surgeries and pharmacies.

The STSFT emergency departments will remain open around the clock to help in anyone in an emergency.

Its community nursing services will run as usual, including the Care Coordination Hub.

Out-of-ours GP services will accessible across its communities. Surgeries have details in place to help, should an appointment be needed.

The Trust is urging people to make sure they get any repeat prescription requests in within the next couple of days. This will give surgeries time to handle these.

People are also reminded to make sure their medicine cabinets are well-stocked.

Sheena Fish, the Trust’s Lead Divisional Director, said: “Our Emergency Departments are always very busy places and more so during the Bank Holidays. We’re expecting this to continue as the strike action takes place after the weekend.

“We will have safe levels of care available at our hospitals. But we always need to make sure we see those who are most seriously hurt or unwell first. That means anyone else could face a long wait and then still be told to go elsewhere for treatment.

“This is why we’re asking people to think carefully about where they should get help before they come to hospital. Some appointments might need to be rescheduled because of the industrial action but unless you hear otherwise, please still come in for your next visit.”

Where to look for help or advice

Anyone who needs advice or to check where is the right place for their care can use NHS 111 Online as a first port of call. In an emergency, they should call 999 or head for their nearest A&E.

Health advice and information is also available via the NHS App or the NHS website or a patient’s GP practice website, which link to a range of online services.

In most cases, people can order repeat prescriptions online. Opening hours for over the weekend can be found through this page: Think pharmacy first 

For children’s health advice people can download the Little Orange Book, which offers tips about a wide range of illnesses and conditions. It can be downloaded by clicking here: Little Orange Book

Those looking after children can also visit the Healthier Together website through or can download the app via their phone.

British Sign Language (BSL) speakers can make a BSL video call to 999.

Deaf people can use 18000 to contact 999 using text relay. More details are available via https://999bsl.co.uk/

If you are concerned about how much you, or someone you know, drinks, there’s lots of help available.

Speak to your GP, find your local alcohol support service, or contact Drinkline on freephone 0300 123 1110 or Alcoholics Anonymous on 0845 769 7555.

Source: https://www.stsft.nhs.uk/news/latest-news/patients-urged-think-carefully-resident-doctors-strike-six-days-wake-easter-weekend

Nick Flanagan is the Cancer Prehabilitation Team Lead and Digital Allied Health Professional at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust (STSFT).

 

Away from work he is an extreme endurance athlete who takes on Ironman triathlons, ice swims and cross country runs.

 

The 34-year-old, who lives in South Shields, will face his “biggest test to date” by swimming across the Gibraltar Strait. He will leave Tarifa in Spain, the southernmost tip of Europe, and head for the North African coastline in Morocco, a route of 14.4km (9 miles) at its narrowest point.

 

Money raised through the feat will go to the cancer fund of the Trust’s STS Charity.

 

The swim is one of the Oceans Seven, a prestigious marathon swimming challenge consisting of seven gruelling, iconic open-water channel swims.

 

The strait is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. Nick will also contend with the threat of killer whales, great white sharks and jellyfish, along with the wind, cold and cross-currents – all in just his Speedos.

 

He will set off between today (Monday March 30) and Wednesday April 8, when conditions allow. The Strait of Gibraltar Swimming Association will co-ordinate the crossing, which can take up to six hours to complete.

 

Two pilot boats will offer support, one for communication and navigation, the other for helping him eat and drink. If he touches one of the boats, he will be disqualified.

 

Nick said: “Training for the Gibraltar Strait has been unlike anything I’ve ever done, physically, mentally, and emotionally.

 

“It wasn’t just about getting fit, it was about preparing to move through one of the most unpredictable stretches of water on the planet.

 

“From long, meditative pool sessions to early morning sea swims, my life became a cycle of aching shoulders, cold water and relentless practice.

 

“I learned to stay calm when my hands went numb, to fight through headwinds that made me feel like I wasn’t moving and to trust myself when the water pushed and pulled in every direction.

 

“Strength work, stability training, and endless rotator cuff exercises kept me durable enough to handle the distance, but the biggest challenge was mental.

 

“Hours alone in open water teach you to sit with discomfort, reset your thoughts, and keep moving no matter what.”

 

He added: “The moment I knew I was ready wasn’t after a perfect session, it was after a messy, brutal one where I kept going anyway. That’s when I realised I am ready to attempt it.

 

“Most of my friends, family and swim team think I am crazy to even attempt it, and honestly, I agree.

 

“However, I strongly believe ‘What is for you, won’t pass you’ and this is my opportunity. It’s also raising money for a fantastic cause.

 

“All of my support networks have been brilliant in the lead up, but my mam Annette and boyfriend Jamie have been pivotal in helping me prepare.”

 

STS Charity supports patients, carers, families and staff. Funds buy additional equipment, improve facilities and make sure patients have access to the things that make their time in hospital a little bit better.

The cancer fund within it aims to offer more services and support its patients. This includes specialist rehabilitation programmes, equipment and resources, a better patient experience and life changing health improvements.

In Nick’s role, he leads the development and delivery of the growing Prehabilitation (Prehab) service. This is designed to optimise patients’ physical, nutritional, and psychological wellbeing before they begin cancer treatment.

Nick, who is originally from Waterford in Ireland, is coached by Russell White, an Irish Olympian and Commonwealth athlete. In addition to his own fitness sessions, Nick is a member of Wearside Triathlon and strength trains at Studio H in South Shields.

Anyone who would support his fundraiser can donate via this link: Gibraltar Strait Swim for STS Charity (Cancer Services)

Source: https://www.stsft.nhs.uk/news/latest-news/physiotherapist-swim-between-continents-help-care-his-cancer-patients

 

New NHS England data shows that one in three calls (34%, 3,457) to Martha’s Rule by patients, families and staff identified rapid worsening of a patient’s condition, helping the NHS to identify concerns more quickly and make crucial interventions to care.

Between September 2024 and December 2025, 10,119 escalation calls were made to Martha’s Rule helplines.

3,457 of these calls helped identify acute deterioration, which led to 1,885 patients receiving changes in treatment, including 446 potentially life-saving interventions to transfer them to enhanced levels of care.

More than 6,000 calls have addressed clinical, communication, or coordination concerns, leading to meaningful improvements in care or system navigation for patients and their families.

Calls via Martha’s Rule helplines have more than doubled since June last year (4,911) as the roll out has been ramped up, with all adult and paediatric acute inpatient sites in the NHS now in the process of implementing Martha’s Rule.

Hospitals have rolled out communications campaigns, including dedicated posters around their wards and buildings, to help raise awareness of Martha’s Rule and ensure the programme is easy-to-understand and that its use is normalised for patients, families and staff.

Martha’s mum Merope Mills said: “The more data that is gathered, the clearer it becomes that Martha’s Rule is having a hugely positive effect. Apart from the lives saved, over a third of the calls have led to a marked improvement in care.

“The process is not being overused and has obviously met a need, giving patients and families real agency. We look forward to its thorough implementation in maternity departments and call for its rapid introduction in Wales and Scotland.”

Dr Aidan Fowler, National Director of Patient Safety at NHS England, said: “Martha’s Rule is already helping to save lives and transform the culture of the NHS – with 10,000 calls made to the helplines in just over a year and over four hundred potentially life-saving interventions triggered.

“These figures show that Merope and Paul’s tireless campaigning and the hard work of staff are helping the NHS listen to families more effectively and shows that when concerns are raised, hospital teams are ready to respond.”

Martha Mills died in 2021 aged 13 after developing sepsis in hospital, where she had been admitted with a pancreatic injury after falling off her bike.

Martha’s family’s concerns about her deteriorating condition were not responded to, and in 2022 a coroner ruled that Martha would probably have survived had she been moved to intensive care earlier.

In February 2024, NHS England began the implementation of Martha’s Rule, following the campaigning of Martha’s parents, Merope and Paul, and a roll-out across 143 pilot sites was announced in May 2024.

The major patient safety initiative in hospitals requires staff to use a structured approach to obtaining information about a patient’s condition from patients and their families at least daily and encourages patients, families and carers to speak to the care team if they notice changes in someone’s condition.

It also provides them with a way to seek an urgent review if their or their loved one’s condition deteriorates – and are concerned this is not being responded to.

Staff can themselves ask for a review from a different team if they are concerned the appropriate action is not being taken.

The roll-out of Martha’s Rule has been made possible by the dedication of Martha’s parents, Merope and Paul, and the hard work of NHS staff across the country, supported by NHS England and the Health Innovation Network’s Patient Safety Collaboratives.

Source: https://www.england.nhs.uk/2026/03/over-10000-calls-to-marthas-rule-in-first-16-months-to-trigger-urgent-review-of-care/

Families rated the care they received in hospital after the birth of their baby higher at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust (STSFT) than any other Trust across the whole of the North East and Yorkshire region at 8.4 out of 10.

Postnatal care at STSFT was also rated the best in the region at 9.0 out of 10.

The national CQC survey measures how satisfied people are with their maternity care. It looks at people’s experiences of services as they prepared for the arrival of their baby, the delivery and what support they were given following the birth.

The results for STSFT show continued improvement for local maternity services, building on last year’s excellent results. The latest feedback from patients and families shows STSFT is achieving better than expected results compared to the rest of the NHS in England.

One of the biggest areas of improvement is around the support offered from midwives to parents when feeding their baby. The results show families rated their experience in South Tyneside and Sunderland as ‘much better’ than most other Trusts in two key areas:

	STSFT score	National average
Decisions about how to feed a baby were respected by midwives	9.8 out of 10 (2024 score 9.1)	9
Advice on feeding being available at evenings, nights or weekends	8.6 out of 10 (2024 score 6.5)	6.3

Local maternity teams also scored ‘better’ than most other Trusts in eight other areas covering all parts of the maternity care pathway. This included getting enough support for mental health during pregnancy, the care received in hospital after birth and many aspects of postnatal care:

Better than most other Trusts for:		STSFT score	National average
Antenatal care	Midwives and doctors being aware of medical histories	8.1 out of 10	7.1
	Getting enough support for mental health	9.6 out of 10	9.0
Care in hospital	A partner or loved one was involved as much as they wanted	9.9 out of 10	9.5
	Pain management after the birth	8.8 out of 10	7.8
Postnatal care	Getting help from a midwife when needed	9.1 out of 10	8.6
	Getting information about physical recovery after birth	8.0 out of 10	6.9
	Getting help and advice from midwives about feeding in the four weeks after birth	8.2 out of 10	7.1
	Getting help and advice from midwives about baby’s progress in the four weeks after birth	8.5 out of 10	7.9

Jane Anderson, Director of Midwifery at South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust said: “We are delighted and reassured that such positive feedback has been given by families who have used our maternity services this year.

“To see such strong results, with some of the best scores across the whole NHS, is testament to our teams and recognition of the care we offer. Our community midwives and hospital teams work very hard to support families and make sure they have a good experience at such a special and important time.

“Colleagues working in all areas of maternity have worked incredibly hard over recent years to improve our service offer and we are very grateful for their support and dedication. We now want to keep improving further with the aim of being excellent in all areas of our care. This feedback is key in helping us to do that.”

South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust has invested over £6 million over the past two years to upgrade its maternity facilities. The full refurbishment of all 30 delivery suite rooms at Sunderland Royal Hospital will complete in Spring next year.

The 2025 maternity survey involved 119 NHS Trusts in England. To see the full results visit: Maternity survey 2025

Source: https://www.stsft.nhs.uk/news/latest-news/families-rate-maternity-care-south-tyneside-and-sunderland-some-best-nhs

Two Urgent Dental Access Centres (UDACs) have been opened as part of a new regionwide network launched by North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board (NENC ICB).

The 23 centres across the North East and North Cumbria include:

• Jarrow Urgent Dental Access Centre, Grange Road West Dental Practice, 6 Grange Road West, Jarrow, NE32 3JA
• South Shields Urgent Dental Access Centre, 1a Dentist, 74 Fowler Street, South Shields, NE33 1PD

They provide appointments to diagnose and treat urgent dental issues and conditions, but do not offer routine dental care, like check-ups.

The 23 centres will offer almost 109,000 urgent dental appointments every year. A limited number of 30-minute appointments will be available at each centre daily, with priority given to people with the greatest clinical needs.

Appointments can be booked using the online booking system on the ICB’s website: https://northeastnorthcumbria.nhs.uk/here-to-help-you/nhs-dentistry

Anyone struggling to book an appointment at an Urgent Dental Access Centre can seek help via NHS 111. The centres do not offer a walk-in service so appointments must be booked.

Eligibility for urgent dental care

Patients can access urgent dental care if they have:

• Severe toothache that causes pain that does not stop or cannot be eased by over-the-counter painkillers
• Dental abscess infections that cause swelling, pain and possibly fever
• Broken or knocked-out teeth
• Bleeding in the mouth following a dental procedure or an injury that does not stop by itself but can be controlled. If bleeding cannot be controlled in any way, emergency care may be needed.
• Swelling in the mouth or face that could be a sign of infection
• Fractured, loose or displaced fillings causing pain
• Severe bleeding from gums or conditions affecting other soft areas of the mouth (such as cheeks or tongue).

They can also ask for an urgent dental appointment if they are worried about conditions like:

• Mild or moderate pain that eases with pain relief
• Minor dental trauma
• Bleeding after having a tooth taken out
• Loose or displaced crowns, bridges and veneers
• Fractured or loose-fitting dentures and other appliances
• Fractured posts that do not cause pain
• Fractured, loose or displaced fillings that do not cause pain
• Bleeding gums

Anyone can use a UDAC if they have one or more of the urgent problems listed above and:

• are not currently getting ongoing treatment from an NHS dentist
• cannot get an urgent appointment at a local high street dentist

Patients can visit any of the 23 UDACs in the network, not just the one closest to them. Normal NHS charges and exemptions apply.

For more information on North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board’s plan to improve oral health and increase access to NHS dental care across the region, visit: https://northeastnorthcumbria.nhs.uk/here-to-help-you/nhs-dentistry.

The four ways patients can access NHS dental care

Contact an NHS dentist

NHS dentists provide routine dental care and urgent care appointments during their normal working hours. Patients should contact their regular dentist if they have one or they can find an NHS dentist at https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-dentist. If patients have an urgent care issue and cannot get an appointment with an NHS dentist, they can contact the services below. See appendix 1 for the criteria for urgent care appointments.

Contact dentists that have extra urgent appointments

Selected dentists across the region have extra urgent appointments. A list of contact details for those practices can be found on the ICB’s website at: https://northeastnorthcumbria.nhs.uk/here-to-help-you/nhs-dentistry Patients can ask for an urgent appointment at any of the practices listed. The number of urgent appointments available at each practice will vary across the days and weeks, so we cannot guarantee an appointment will always be available.

Book an appointment at an urgent dental access centre

Urgent dental access centres offer appointments to diagnose and treat urgent dental problems. Patients can book their own appointment at an urgent dental access centre at https://northeastnorthcumbria.nhs.uk/here-to-help-you/nhs-dentistry.

Contact NHS 111 for urgent care

Patients should contact 111.nhs.uk or call 111 if they cannot find an urgent appointment with any of the NHS dental services above and they have:

• Severe toothache that causes pain that does not stop or cannot be eased by over-the-counter painkillers.
• Dental abscess infections that cause swelling, pain and possibly fever.
• Broken or knocked-out teeth.
• Bleeding in the mouth following a dental procedure or an injury that does not stop by itself but can be controlled. If bleeding cannot be controlled in any way, emergency care may be needed.
• Swelling in the mouth or face that could be a sign of infection.
• Fractured, loose or displaced fillings causing pain.
• Severe bleeding from gums or conditions affecting other soft areas of the mouth (such as cheeks or tongue).

The NHS 111 health advisor will talk to the patient about their needs. If they do not need help right away, the health advisor will give the patient advice on how to treat the problem themselves until they can get an appointment. If the patient does need urgent help, NHS 111 may be able to find them an appointment during normal working hours at an urgent dental access centre or at an out-of-hours treatment service. Most general hospitals do not have an on-call dental service for dental pain so patients should visit 111.nhs.uk or call 111 for emergency dental care.

Patients should only go to A&E or call 999 if they have:

• Serious injuries to the face, mouth, jaw or teeth
• Heavy bleeding from the mouth that will not stop
• Severe swelling of the mouth, lips, throat or neck, and difficulty breathing or opening 1 or both eyes
• Any injury to the head or face that has caused them to lose consciousness, vomit, or have double vision

Resident Doctors who are members of the British Medical Association (BMA) will strike from 7am tomorrow (Friday November 14), until 7am on Wednesday November 19.

South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust has put plans in place to make sure safe care continues to be offered while industrial action takes place.

It has issued a call for people to play their part in supporting healthcare services during this time by only using emergency care when really need.

NHS 111 Online offers advice 24/7 and can direct people where to seek treatment and support.

GP surgeries will remain open and pharmacies are also a source of help and advice.

Sheena Fish is Divisional Director for Operations. She said: “Our Emergency Departments are always very busy, particularly as we approach winter. We’re expecting them to be under even greater pressure during this time of industrial action.

“We will have safe levels of care available at our hospitals. As ever, we will need to prioritise treatment for those who are most seriously unwell or injured. That means anyone else could be waiting a long time and then might still be asked to seek treatment elsewhere.

“That is why we are asking people to think where they need to seek help before coming to hospital. We have rescheduled some appointments as we prepared for industrial action. Unless you have heard otherwise, please still come for your visit.”

NHS 111 Online offers a symptom checker. It can guide people to the service they need, while self-care advice is available online from the NHS at nhs.uk.

Details of pharmacies can be found on this page: Find a Pharmacy

Anyone needing help for their mental health can visit this page: Check your mental health symptoms

Source: https://www.stsft.nhs.uk/news/latest-news/patients-urged-think-carefully-resident-doctors-strike-five-days-1