Feature: cORonaHEROES

CORONAHEROES

Recognising just a few of the ORs who played such vital roles during the height of the pandemic… we know there are others out there and we applaud you all.

Andy Cairns (Bristowe 1973)

GP & Ward Doctor, Petersfield Hospital

Andy was one of the brave thousands who came out of retirement to return to the frontline. In his first week, he contracted COVID-19 but fought off the virus and was back again working in Petersfield Hospital.

Alice Gaffney (Mullens 2009)

Pharmacy Technician, Royal Devon & Exeter NHS Foundation

Alice works in the busy Pharmacy at the Royal Devon & Exeter NHS Foundation Trust. It was wonderful to hear her saying how grateful she was to be going to work!

Aleks Rula (Capel 2012)

Foundation Doctor, Sothend-on-Sea Hospital

Aleks’ seven-day week hospital rota covered both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 wards at Southend Hospital, so when we were looking forward to our weekends, he was hard at work.

George Stuart (Bristowe 2010)

PC, Surrey Police

As a PC at Surrey Police, Runnymede Beat, a key role for George has been working on the frontline to keep people safe during the pandemic, offering advice and guidance on the ever-changing regulations.

The Reed’s Community

Staff and ORs

Led by D&T gurus Keith Ditchburn and Paul Millington, and Kate Dunn from a medical perspective, a host of families based at Reed’s came together to go above and beyond in the production and assembly of more than 4,000 PPE visors donated to a vast list of local hospitals, care homes, hospices and health centres which were much appreciated by all.

Stuart Bentley-Hibbert (Blathwayt 1989)

Consultant Radiologist, New York Presbyterian Hospital

Recognising that this pandemic is exactly that... a global virus touching many lives, we were pleased to hear that Stuart, a Consultant Radiologist, was doing well at the New York Presbyterian Hospital, albeit busy and having to work in different ways!

Alex Greenwood (Bristowe 2015)

Greenwood’s Grocers

Okay, so they may not be wearing PPE in the photo, but our #cORonaHEROES don’t all have to be medics! Alex and his brothers, Ali and Jack, (still at Reed’s) set up a fruit and veg delivery service at the start of lockdown, providing vital services to vulnerable customers that extended to Clandon, Cobham, Esher, and Weybridge.

Luke Morgan-Rowe (Mullens 2002)

Vascular Radiologist, Lister Hospital

Luke, a Vascular Radiologist at the Lister Hospital, is pictured in his PPE just before going into emergency surgery. Sadly, COVID-19 touches all parts of our health service.

Fred Shepherd (Bristowe 2016)

Brand Development Director, Charles Austen Pumps

Fred, and the company where he is Brand Director, have been the UK’s sole supplier of medical suction pumps, critical for ventilator treatment, many of which were used at the Nightingale Hospital. They have also been involved in the manufacture of specialist equipment for laboratories, including autoclaves (also known as steam sterilisers), macerators and blood analysers. How incredible to be playing such a vital role in the fight against COVID-19.

Tom Worner (Bristowe 98), Josh Brown (Bristowe 2009) and Alex Wratten (Blathwayt 2009)

Co-founder, Henley Shipping

So this is how the story goes... Tom got in touch after seeing posts about the Reed’s PPE visors to ask if we could provide his mother’s care company with some for their frontline staff. Like a shot we said yes and then contacted fellow ORs Josh and Alex, Directors of Henley Shipping, as they’d kindly offered to help with deliveries. Josh himself took them down to Bramley. Talk about the power of the Reed’s community.

Connor MacMillan (Bristowe 2015)

My Experience on a COVID-19 ward

Each person has his/her own story to tell about this year; for me, transitioning from being a student to a full-time medical professional, more than a year earlier than I should have, was not something I planned on doing!

In March 2020 I should have been on an Obstetrics ward, learning about the art and science of childbirth. However, one week into my eight-week placement, all medical students were told to go home. The next thing we knew, Matt Hancock announced that thousands of student doctors would be graduating early and joining the NHS workforce to counter the global pandemic, much to the surprise of the universities and the students.

My peers and I were given the title of Assistant Doctor; this meant my role was similar to a Junior Doctor (or F1), but without prescribing medication. On starting, every single person on the ward was extremely friendly and welcoming. They appreciated we had chosen to be there in order to help and understood that this was our first experience of working in a clinical environment not as a student. The sense of unity and teamwork throughout the whole of the NHS was the biggest thing that struck me, probably amplified during the pandemic, creating an extremely supportive environment in which to work.

One of the most remarkable experiences I had was when one of the nurses asked me to review a 34-year-old man with COVID-19 who was struggling to breathe. In a short space of time, his oxygen saturations in his blood plummeted so was swiftly taken to ICU to be put on a ventilator. This rapid deterioration in a patient so young was extremely eyeopening and something that highlighted the unpredictable nature of the virus.

By contrast, there were the many seriously ill patients who recovered, including one who had spent over 11 weeks in hospital, having been intubated and ventilated in ICU. After recuperating, she was able to return home and, on leaving, the whole ward gave her a spontaneous round of applause. This was a perfect example of what this profession and the NHS is all about. This woman was given the best care from medical professionals in every sector: doctors, nurses, physios, healthcare assistants, pharmacists, dieticians, porters, cleaners, catering staff…the list goes on. The combined teamwork meant this patient, and so many others, were able to go back to their families. Seeing tangible results only furthered my desire to finish my studies and qualify so I can be part of this wonderful institution.

Being unable to see my family was difficult at times, but they were extremely supportive of my decision to work in the NHS and gain invaluable experience during a pandemic. It will be a time I will never forget, and it will undoubtedly benefit me as a future doctor for years to come.