‘I feel grateful to be alive’ - nurse returns to work at hospital that saved his life
A POPULAR West London nurse who spent 10 days in intensive care battling coronavirus has returned to work at the hospital where his life was saved.
Father-of-three Ralph Deocampo was applauded by colleagues as he arrived at Charing Cross Hospital in Hammersmith on August 17, and says he feels “grateful to be alive”.
The moment echoed the day, four months earlier, when he was escorted out of the same hospital in a wheelchair by cheering crowds.
Mr Deocampo, 47, said: “I was in intensive care for 10 days and was discharged two days later [on April 19].
“I was unconscious and on a ventilator. I don’t have any memories from that time.”
It began in early April, when Mr Deocampo had only mild symptoms. But his wife Brenda, who is also a nurse, “drove me to the hospital because I had a persistent cough and a temperature”.
“When I got to the hospital I was walking, but when they checked, my oxygen levels in my blood were dangerously low and they referred me to ICU [intensive care unit],” Mr Deocampo said.
“I can’t remember the time before I was intubated, I can only remember feeling hungry and asking my wife to get me some food. It’s very strange.
“I woke up 10 days later. I had b e en bloated and vomiting and they thought I might have been bleeding internally. Fortunately I wasn’t.
“My wife thought I might not make it.”
He explained what life was like for the past four months as he regained his strength.
“I felt well enough two
My biggest worry was if I might not be able to do the job I love... if I might be too stressed and anxious to go back, even though I did want to
Ralph Deocampo
months ago but my GP said it would be dangerous to risk becoming unwell again, and they wanted to make sure I would be physically and mentally ready,” he said. “Through May and June it was a struggle to walk and I was using a zimmer frame.”
With the encouragement of his wife and three daughters, he rebuilt his stamina for going on five mile walks.
He continued: “It was hard for the first few months.
“I worried if I would be the same person and if I would be able to manage such a stressful job again, and would it affect me emotionally and psychologically. “My biggest worry was if I might not be able to do the job I love... if I might be too stressed and anxious to go back, even though I did want to.
“I wanted to go back to A&E where I had been. I wanted to see trolley number seven and the bed I had been staying in. “I feel grateful. I feel grateful to be alive and grateful to the team who helped me at Charing Cross who saved me and looked after me.
“My colleagues and of course my family have been so supportive, and I thank God for my second life.”
Mr Deocampo, who lives with his family in Hounslow, has been working shorter shifts and part time as he continues to recuperate.
Originally from the Philippines, he moved to the UK in 1999, and has worked for Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust since 2001.
Mr Deocampo and his wife Brenda met 18 years ago, not long after they both started working for the Trust.
He is a site nurse manager across the Trust’s three major hospitals: St Mary’s in Paddington, Hammersmith and Charing Cross.
“It’s an operational role that involves managing the nursing and medical support staff,” he said.
“People know me because I have been here a long time.
“I have seen different people progress with their careers, I have seen junior doctors go all the way to become consultants.
“You work with them and become their friends.”