Visiting my son in his Uni halls.
Had a look at his room while he was making us a cup of tea. This is his trouser drawer. My work as a mother is complete.
On testing and tracing, Health Secretary Matt Hancock just said "My Scottish & Welsh colleagues are working to bring in a system as soon as they can". Except
@NicolaSturgeon
presented this yesterday in detail in 🏴, been piloting in 3 boards here, and will be live tomorrow. 🤦♀️
The 🎄 Poinsettia is still thriving six months on!
Plus I made it to 52 🙄
Thanks to Her Majesty the Queen for some birthday time off due to the
#Jubilee
this weekend.
Particularly grateful to everyone who puts up with me - you know who you are 🙏
To everyone who hasn't seen their parents or close family at all this year.
My Mum is 76 tomorrow.
Photo from the last time we met in 2019. I'm looking forward to next year when those with families overseas can reunite.
Rest of 2020 will be tough. But 2021 will be better 🤗
I'm tired and on here less often but I just want to say this so short sighted and such a mistake. Stepping away from supporting many other countries and international development - including global health research - will harm all of us in the long term.
Abdication of responsibility at UK level during the most recent weeks of this crisis.
Devolved nations cannot adequately protect their populations. Borders & limited powers are the main constraints.
Decisions (or lack of) in England affect all of the UK - really worried 🙁
This is what is it like to be abandoned by the state. The cabinet is not worthy of the name, abdicating their responsibility for leadership, honesty and difficult decisions just when it is needed most.
I find it hard to forgive.
Irrespective of politics, this is how you communicate with the public. Not blaming particular groups. Not threatening people with hefty fines. Not saying that the military will be brought in to control the population. Acknowledge challenges, focus on the response & convey hope.
School leavers gathering for my daughter this evening. The sun shone in
#Edinburgh
. Other young people & families didn’t get the opportunity for these occasions over the past 2 years so feeling grateful ( & hoping she gets home at a reasonable hour 🙂)
Thinking of friends & family tomorrow on Mother ‘s Day who can’t see their children or their own mothers, or would like to have become Mums but it didn’t happen. Flowers are for any day & always lift my spirits 😊🌸
Thanks to everyone who joined today or sent in best wishes. Very proud to have been born in Scotland, emigrated to Canada and returned.
All countries are stronger when we welcome people from around the 🌍🌏🌎
We have much to learn from each other 🙏
🚨
@EdinburghUni
Public Health Professor,
@LindaBauld
, has been named Scot of the Year 2021 🏴 by
@SSFCanada
🇨🇦.
Professor Bauld, from 🇨🇦 and now working in 🏴, exemplifies the strong relationship and modern day opportunities between🏴 & 🇨🇦.
👀➡️:
Haven't seen Mum & Dad (3rd & 4th from left) for almost 2 years now.
But great to see this photo of them and other (fellow Scots ex-pats in Victoria, British Columbia) family friends toasting my OBE. 🏴🇨🇦
Still thinking of everyone else with families overseas at this time.
Huge thanks from all women & girls in Scotland to the colleagues who fought so hard for this progressive piece of legislation. It’s about dignity & human rights & I hope other countries will follow 👏
Common random Qs to me, 🙏 all
1. That circuit box needs attention
Old house & am in a box room It's not dangerous
2. 💐 & non-essential travel
They are from local supermarkets
3. You've been to the hairdresser during lockdown
Hair straightener & home highlighting kit
❤️ to all
Just reflecting on the fact that the U.K. has made & is currently making savage cuts to its global health research budget
#ODA
, at a time when a key lesson is that decision makers failed to listen & learn quickly enough from what was happening in other countries. 😞
Thanks to Jan
@NHS_Lothian
clinical nurse specialist in palliative care who returned from retirement like many others to administer vaccines. UK wide effort by funders, researchers, pharmaceutical companies & the
#NHS
🙏 today to have received my 1st dose
Photo credit
@STVNews
Looking back March 2020
All I did was to keep communicating & put some flowers on the filing cabinet
One family member was in hosp w Covid-19 -recovered thanks to
@NHS_Lothian
Husband & son unemployed
But I've not lost anyone close to me
Thinking tonight of those who have🕯️
Visiting Chris
@NakedScientists
today after a kind invitation from him to join a family party. I got to arrange the flowers for the tables 😊 Great to catch up in person
Replied to >30 emails this w/e from people who've not yet taken up a vaccine
I've sent on as much reliable information as I can
We are all tired. We have other work to do.
But for every colleague still engaging with the media & public & trying to help
🙏
Solidarity w everyone home schooling
Only 1 teenager left in our house doing so. Thinking of everyone w younger children - incredibly difficult
P.S. let's stop blaming each other. Messages today on whether my flowers essential?🤷♀️
They are from local supermarket. Better days ahead
Signing off now for Christmas eve & Christmas Day🎄
I wish everyone in 🏴 & colleagues, friends & family further afield all the best. My thoughts to all who can't see their loved ones at the current time
P.S. to all those who have sent kinds messages about my 💐📺 - thank you🤗
Wonderful walk in the Edinburgh sunshine ☀️ with my dear friend & colleague Prof
@LindaBauld
- she’s been an inspiration in 2020 with her tireless communication & is simply awesome.
Youngest children returning to school in Scotland & Wales tomorrow & a v small number of senior pupils for key assessment prep.
This is a cautious approach that will be carefully evaluated before more changes
Wishing all pupils, parents/carers, staff all the best for this return
Eldest off to
@UniofNewcastle
after a year of on & off temporary jobs
Plus his sister delighted her summer job now led to weekend work during 6th year
All the best to young people starting Uni, College, training & employment
You've been through a lot
We are very proud of you👏😊
That moment when you thought it was radio but it was actually live on BBC World News once already in my pajamas. Fortunately noone was watching because there is some other programme on that everyone is watching 🤦♀️
Tomorrow someone will receive the first Covid-19 vaccine in 🏴 They may wish to preserve their anonymity so we need to respect that-will be an NHS employee.
This is an historic moment & I hope it will be captured and preserved. Good luck to all involved & working 24/7 on this.
Another devolution tweet
Reading comments from colleagues regarding measures that the PM may announce. Please stop using the term UK when you mean England. Wales & N Ireland already introduced v tough restrictions. Scotland has new 5 Level strategy... etc🤦♀️
Just saw some young lads moving & securing all the bins for our older neighbours as
#StormDudley
takes hold in
#Leith
#Newhaven
. Thanks to everyone working & helping out in difficult weather 🌧️🌬️
#AcademicTwitter
in Scotland: To further & higher ed colleagues teaching online/in person. Could you take 2 mins at the start of your lecture to check if all your students have downloaded the app? Would take 2 minutes. Please RT.
Starbank Road in Edinburgh being resurfaced by
@Edinburgh_CC
- great to see so many local people out this evening walking,
#Rollerskating
&
#Rollerblading
. Quite a transformation without the cars
Home working. Interested to hear from others - how are you coping many months on?
I have a work space & am v fortunate
Looks tidy on Zoom etc, but electricians still contact me expressing concern about a dodgy light switch they spot above the flowers. Here's the rest of it🎇🙁
So these briefings need to be on BBC TV as a public service broadcaster. If changes occur, I hope these are modest. Changes should not reduce access to updates, explanations & transparency (particularly for priority groups) as we continue to try to address
#Covid19
in 🏴 9/9
Pleased to finally see
@shanemcanning
@sciencekate1
in person today with
@devisridhar
. Thanks for all their support and work over the past year plus, and warm wishes to Kate just before her maternity leave 😊
Thanks to all who recommended Lunan Bay in
#Angus
. Such a lovely day to visit. Looking forward to
@StonehavenFolk
festival this eve & also hope to explore some of the other places suggested ( many recommendations!) for our few days away here in 🏴’s beautiful east coast
Sunshine on lovely Ramsay Gardens from Edinburgh castle esplanade this afternoon. Also we had daylight here from just after 08:00 to 16:30 today, which is progress 🙂⛅️
Like many in the N. Hemisphere, trying to get through this time of year & always find it challenging. Made much more difficult this winter as people, communities & services face cost of living increases & pressure. Brighter days ahead & look forward to them.
.
@Scotgov
kept providing these briefings, meanwhile they were paused at UK level (except for occasionally). The continuation of the briefings has, in my view, possibly contributed to higher levels of trust in govnt handling of the crisis in Scotland 6/9
This is really worth a listen.
Vaccinating the World
@bbcworldservice
My friend & colleague
@devisridhar
is the host. She clearly sets out the issues, tells the story & conveys hope. The programme has interviews & insight from many countries.
Christmas flowers (small ones are 'winter angels' helleborus for replanting outside come spring - what a lovely gift). All the best to everyone for the season.
With colleagues in Delhi 2 years ago this week. All eyes on India now, but worth remembering that we are connected between continents, countries, families. We need a global effort on vaccines but individuals can play their part.
@UNICEF
campaign fundraiser
“It’s fantastic the progress that has been made”
Professor of Public Health
@LindaBauld
discusses Scotland’s progress in tackling the coronavirus pandemic.
#TheNine
They also allow
@NicolaSturgeon
& her colleagues to EXPLAIN the rationale for decisions and the data that informs decisions, and answer questions. The public need to understand WHY something is happening not just be told to do things. Televised briefings help with this 7/9
Best photo of 2021 (for me)
Dad set up a heater under the hummingbird feeder due to unusually cold weather (Victoria 🇨🇦) to keep the birds alive.
Grateful to have been able to see my parents & my children's grandparents in Dec & thinking this NY of all families still apart.
Flower tweet after a long day & so much sad news this week
Was nursing a purple bigleaf hydrangea, now come into its own
My fave flower, because my GM had them in abundance on Arran where Dad grew up. She smuggled seedlings to us in visits to Canada
They flourished there also😊
Chris
@NakedScientists
& I will be back on
@BBCBreakfast
tomorrow at the slightly later time of around 09:30 for a quick update. Also looking ahead to what's next - do join us if you can.
Spending more time this week on essential policy and research priorities than Covid-19 response.
I really hope this continues.
Public health is about much more than this pandemic.
Covid recovery is about *so* much more than public health.
A lot of work ahead 😬
Very sad news. A wonderful actor who also helped me navigate a rain shower with a bag of shopping and a pram when I lived near Killearn. RIP Robbie 🏴❤️
To all my public health colleagues working around the ⏲️now + have done through🎄
@PHE_uk
@P_H_S_Official
@PublicHealthW
@publichealthni
& Universities.
It's not just frontline NHS staff who are under huge pressure.
Thanks for all you are doing.
Next few weeks look v challenging
All PhD supervisors are delighted when a student passes w minor corrections, but I am particularly thrilled for
@FionaDobbie
today
PhD completed not only while working F/T but also
one wedding, two sons, two house moves, one dog & in the last year a pandemic
Congrats Fiona 🥳🎉
"Lockdown" not a helpful term. Media need to stop using it.
It creates fear. For people in custody, those experiencing domestic abuse & those shielding.
Challenging months ahead, but we can adapt. It's temporary. Support (including financial) for those most affected will be key.
Now is the time for all of us w line management responsibilities in UK Unis to reach out to our colleagues
Particularly to staff & students who have childcare/caring responsibilities
To say we are here to support you & if we don't have the answers to your qs, to try & find them
Evidence from well conducted studies shows that sustained communication of public health messages, (including repetition of messages over an extended period) is far more effective than shorter, time limited communication 3/9
Husband used to complain about noise from the Tattoo 🙄 Now he's concerned that it's August & its not yet started.
#Edinburgh
folk love to grumble about
@edfests
@EdinburghTattoo
but we are so lucky to have the Festivals back on our doorstep this year. Good luck to all involved❤️
Great to see this profile article of
@TravellingTabby
by
@HMcArdleHT
. As others have already posted this morning, this website is so useful and I'm very grateful to John for all he's doing
I am becoming very boring/irritating on devolution, I know.
But it matters to the people of 🏴🏴 & Northern Ireland. 4 nations facing similar challenges. Each different so local media (including within England) & community engagement key to getting us through the next few months
Please note that when the Prime Minister makes his announcement tonight, any changes he makes to “national measures” apply to England only. Here in Wales we already have stay at home restrictions. Diolch to you all for staying home - you are protecting our NHS and saving lives.