The personal tragedies that lie behind the pandemic’s grim statistics
FOR Yvonne Bradley, it’s the memory of the special bond between her late husband Barry, 73, and their great-grandson Harrison, six, that hurts the most when she reflects on the pandemic.
“Harrison had some speech and language issues at the time. He wouldn’t talk to anyone. Only Barry could understand him,” explained Yvonne, from Five Roads, near Llanelli.
“Harrison would often come over and stay with us, and Barry would always sleep in with him and talk to him in bed. When we brought Barry’s ashes home, Harrison asked if I could help him lift the box on to the sofa, and then he went and got a pillow so that he could lie down next to him.”
Yvonne’s story is one of many countless tragedies that reflect the true human cost of Covid-19 in the two years since it first emerged as a novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China.
In that time, the virus has claimed more than 150,000 lives in the UK and millions more worldwide, piling untold pressure on countries, economies and healthcare professionals who continue to battle daily to keep their patients and the public safe.
Professor Keir Lewis, a consultant in respiratory medicine at Llanelli’s Prince Philip Hospital, has seen a lot of trauma.
As the hospital’s Covid-19 clinical lead, he still remembers Barry’s final days when it became clear treatments were no longer working, and of the heartbreaking last time he and Harrison said goodbye.
“Barry had responded to treatment at first, but then he started to deteriorate,” Prof Lewis said. “We’d given him everything we could, but he was slowly getting weaker and his family were coming to see him through the window.
“As his condition started to deteriorate, he didn’t want his family to see him so much, but we would still comb his hair and dress him and turn him to face the window.
“I remember one visit where this little boy touched the window with his finger and Barry touched the glass on the other side.
“That was how they said goodbye. It really affected me and a lot of the other staff too.”
For staff on the frontline, who continue to deal daily with the impact of Covid-19, the past two years have been a “high-octane emotional rollercoaster” in the words of Dr Manon Griffiths, a clinical psychologist supporting staff on Hywel Dda University Health Board’s four intensive care units (ICUs).
Being able to share in their patients’ journeys and to celebrate successful outcomes has been a key part of their ability to process these emotions, said Dr Griffiths, as has the importance of providing a dignified and supportive environment for dying patients.
She added: “Some of the staff talk about the validation of the hard work they put in when they’re seeing patients, the gratitude and the thanks.
“Even when we’ve lost patients, we’ve had families that have just been so grateful and so thankful for providing such a dignified and supportive environment for their relative.
“And you know, I think being able to provide a dignified death for patients is a really special thing.”
Themes of fulfilment come across strongly from other healthcare staff, with some having even found their vocation in life in the midst of the pandemic.
Fiona Reynolds joined Dyfi Ward at Bronglais General Hospital, Aberystwyth, as a family liaison officer last April, having made a “big change” – ending a long-term relationship, moving house and leaving her former job in hospitality.
She said: “It’s honestly changed my life. I’ve had so many people holding my hand and even crying, and saying that they’ll never, ever forget my kindness and what a huge difference I have made. I’ve never experienced that before. It’s overwhelming.
“I remember building a very good relationship with an elderly lady who was suffering from extreme confusion.
“We put a diary together and I helped to manage her calendar so that she could remember what day it was, and that really helped her.
“And when I escorted her to her care home, she said how glad she was and that she would have been very frightened without me.
“Joining a hospital in the middle of a pandemic was strange because there are no visitors and patients can get very down.
“They get lonely and that’s really difficult for a lot of them. So just being able to sit and talk with them and to hear their stories is brilliant. It’s an honour.”
Later this year, a memorial garden is due to open in the grounds of Prince Philip Hospital in Llanelli. It will commemorate the lives of those who died and those who have survived the Covid-19 pandemic.
A simple sculpture, with two fingertips touching, will be unveiled in memory of a man who touched the hearts of all the NHS staff who cared for him, who was jokingly given a bell to ring by the nurses who all knew his name. A man who shared a special bond with his great-grandson. A man called Barry.
“Since he passed away, the whole family has found it very hard,” admitted Yvonne, through tears.
“Losing Barry has left a huge hole in our lives, and we are still completely lost without him. He used to light up any room he walked into.
“After he died, Harrison would talk to the stars in the sky and say they were his ‘Bampa’.”
Hywel Dda University Health Board will hold a day of reflection and a minute’s silence at noon today, led by its chair, chief executive and senior chaplain.