Sheffield NHS staff make a pop record with an important health message

Community staff from Sheffield Teaching Hospitals recorded their version of the 1987 number one, retitled as It’s SSKIN, at studios in the city centre.

The song will be used as a resource for community health workers learning about pressure ulcer prevention but it is hoped it may also be used more widely to raise awareness.

SSKIN is an acronym for a five-step approach for pressure ulcer prevention.

The lyrics refer to the risk factors of pressure damage, the signs and symptoms of pressure ulcers and how to prevent them.

The words were written by Maria Levesley, a nurse lead in the integrated care team, who is also the lead singer in the video. She studied for a degree in music before she trained as a nurse.

The original inspiration came from tissue viability nurse consultant Brenda King.

The Pet Shop Boys gave permission for their work to be used and Sheffield-based songwriter and record producer Eliot Kennedy offered free recording and video making through Steel Works Studios, Foundry Studios and Ink and Water Designs.

Maria said: “I have written a few lines for the church panto before, but nothing like this. However, I sing in a band and I’m in a choir, so I do lots of singing.

“I’ve also done backing vocals and recording with a friend who is a singer-songwriter, so being the lead singer didn’t faze me.”

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Other members of staff from NHS community teams feature with Maria in the video and recording.

Maria said: “It has turned out really well. The staff have been brilliant and have really got involved. We used it at our Stop the Pressure awareness event where there were STH hospital and community staff, as well as other care providers.

“We wanted to use it as a training device for STH community staff initially, but it has already grown and we feel it could be used more widely for training and awareness work.”

Pressure ulcers, also known as pressure sores or bed sores, occur when there has been damage to an area of skin and sometimes the tissues beneath.

They are mainly caused by pressure being applied to the skin for prolonged periods.

This could happen to anyone, but people who are less mobile, who sit for long periods of time or who are confined to bed, are more at risk.

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