Let’s keep our discipline and ensure a Merry Christmas for all, says Sheffield health boss

The transplant community could teach all of us about resilience in coping with some of life’s most severest challenges.

Those who have lost loved ones, but honoured their wishes to save other’s lives by donating their organs for transplantation. Others with critical conditions who wait anxiously for news of the availability of a lifesaving organ donation.

Those who realise that even with presumed consent, the need to communicate their wishes to family whose confirmation will ultimately be needed for organ transplant to proceed.

Sadly, one of the three every day who die waiting in vain for call that never comes.

We will need their resilience to cope with the latest tightening of coronavirus restrictions and the realisation that if we do not comply the consequences will be devastating.

We now have the opportunity to put the complacency behind us, save Christmas and, more importantly, more lives.

Perhaps our excitement at coming out of lockdown to enjoy summer diverted us from the stark reality that the pandemic is not yet beaten and weakened our resolve to wash hands, social distance and wear masks where advised.

Our excitement at our schoolchildren returning to meet their mates again, renewing acquaintances with work colleagues, and a progressive return to a degree of normality will be short lived if we don’t act on the latest advice given.

Perhaps in hindsight, the recent increase in enforcement measures should have been adopted at the onset of the crisis.

Lives being lost by countries with earlier experience should have alerted us of the serious consequences of non compliance with preventive measures.

For me, advice was too timid and, in retrospect, set an inappropriate complacency among too many for too long.

However, we do not need to be too despondent, provided we take sensible precautions, while still maintaining our discipline.

If we do that we can still look forward to a well-earned Christmas which will do wonders for our morale, but the economy also.

In essence whether we start the new year in hope, or regret and despondency will surely depend on our responses over the next few crucial weeks.

Let’s not write Christmas off yet – we never have and hopefully never will.