I’ve wanted to be a nurse all my life. Covid won’t stop me working
Staff nurse, University Hospital of North Tees who has returned to work after recovering from Covid-19
NURSING is such a big part of my life. At 16, I had a vision of doing this job while at school in South Africa.
I applied and got in straight away – it was a passion from such a young age. I did all my training in the Free State, before I came to work in the NHS. From the start, I took a pledge to commit to the total health of patients.
I vowed to be compassionate, kind, selfless and hardworking, and that has guided me throughout the 39 years of my career. The pledge was inspired by Florence Nightingale, and I think about her with just her lamp when we are surrounded by all this technology today.
I’d only had three days off before I came down with Covid-19. It came on slowly, gradually, and I found myself in intensive care. I could see my colleagues looking through the window on the ward, they were crying for me. It was so hard for them to see me that way.
So I was overjoyed when I got better. When I was over the worst of it, they were all clapping for me. That video coming off the ward went viral, I saw it was viewed 170,000 times, and it made me so emotional. I thought, these people have saved my life. It was a big morale boost for my colleagues to see me coming out.
My Christian faith helped me too. I knew that it could have happened to any one of them. It could happen to anybody working in a hospital with Covid-19 patients.
But once I recovered, there was no doubt about going back to work. I felt my calling again. I would say to anyone thinking of becoming a nurse – there is no better feeling than helping people to be well again. It is just great to see patients get better and leave the hospital.
You never know what to expect in this job. I have never dealt with anything like this pandemic before. The pandemic has made people appreciate nurses. You need compassion, care and courage.