More than 300 staff from across North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Trust have been redeployed as part of the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
They are a mixture of nursing staff, allied health professionals, administration staff and a range of other roles.
Some staff have returned to the front line after their careers changed paths into medical education. Alyson Ritchie and Dr Jennifer Chilman are two such people. They have gone from training to the front line to being back on the front line. 
Alyson is usually a Clinical Simulation trainer and Dr Chilman a Clinical Teaching Fellow. Both professionals supported a huge roll out of simulation training specific to COVID-19 to front line clinical staff led by Dr Ben Hammond.
Following that they volunteered to return to the front line to help care for patients and support their colleagues.
Dr Chilman said:
“I normally teach undergraduates but they have each gone home or graduated now. I usually do spend a day a week on the wards anyway and my colleagues are under so much pressure at the moment, I knew they really need an extra person and it’s just what you do.”
Alyson and Jennifer are two of over 300 members of staff who have volunteered to be redeployed in order to support the Trusts response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As of the 16th April the trust had redeployed:
172 nursing staff, 64 health care assistants, 30 allied health professionals, 28 administration staff and 40 staff from other disciplines.