A WOMAN working as a community key worker has shared what it is like day-to-day during the coronavirus crisis.

Alison Nairn, 48, from Skelton, works to try and transform the lives of people who are in crisis or in serious trouble.

Alison, a mum of three, has carried on going into people's homes - while always observing the rules and wearing PPE - to make sure they have the support they need.

Alison is a member of a Transformation Challenge Team which provides intensive, one-stop support for people with a range of serious problems ranging from mental health problems to drug and alcohol issues to dealing with violence and homelessness.

The following is Alison's diary as a Transformation Challenge officer.

Monday: Visited a gentleman who had recently lost his job as a contractor and had no money for food or his electricity and was waiting for his Universal Credit application to be processed. I popped round and had a chat to him making sure I adhered to the social distancing advice. One of his main concerns was he thought he would have to get rid of his closest friend - his dog.

I reassured him that was not so.

Tuesday: One of the services that I have been supporting is the prescription delivery service, so I went to Loftus to pick one up and deliver it to a resident in Redcar. After I had dropped the prescription off, I visited a client who was applying for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and needed help with the form. This is an opportunity to help clients understand how to complete these very confusing forms and often when you’re doing something like this it gives them time to relax and share any anxieties. I picked up that she was feeling isolated and having no credit on her phone. We made an arrangement for me to call her daily just to check in – that made her feel much better.

Wednesday: I met a colleague who, with her Health Improvement team, has been volunteering with Theresa Cave from the Chris Cave Foundation charity who have been supporting families across the borough with food parcels. Whilst working on the email helpline I was referring people to a variety of local community groups to get support with shopping, getting food parcels delivered and sometimes just a chat. Being a key worker, I need to have a really good knowledge of services within the area to enable me to signpost effectively and this has changed recently as there is so much community support in the current pandemic that isn’t usually there.

Thursday: Took some time to work at home catching up with my administrative side of the role…but the calls don’t stop. I had a call from an elderly lady who appeared to be confused but didn’t want to bother anyone. She and her husband both had health issues and I was concerned about them. I contacted the lady’s landlord Beyond Housing who also had concerns. Their Safeguarding Officer got in touch with the couple and was able to offer some advice and helped the couple get the support they needed.

Friday: A call from a client who was struggling and asked me to visit. When I arrived, she was really emotional, and this is where the current challenges of social distancing are hard as normally I would be closer to her offering reassurance. We had a long chat on her path and it was clear she needed medical advice. I arranged a consultation for her with her GP for the afternoon and went back later to make sure she was okay.