Join the #BallsToCovid challenge

Over the last year, University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust has created a new rehabilitation service set up to help those recovering from trauma and illness during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Strict infection control changes, as well as restrictions on visiting loved ones, meant rehabilitation teams needed to come up with a new way of making rehabilitation fun for patients. As a result, the COVID-19 Respiratory, Rehabilitation and Discharge Team created the #BallsToCovid Challenge.

Using beach balls and music, the challenge is designed to promote activity, share moments of joy and make people laugh. Olivia Roberts and Helen White from the physiotherapy team have created a series of videos to introduce their challenge with the hope that others will join in and share their #BallsToCovid moves with the rest of Plymouth. Grab a ball, put on some music and get moving!

Kate Tantam, Specialist Sister in ICU, said: “We know that rehabilitation in hospital improves both patient outcomes and patient experience - people get better quicker and feel happier.

“Recovery is a shared responsibility for all. At the Trust we believe in the power of teamwork and we are keen to w