“My colleagues have been so supportive”: staff member praises colleagues after battle with Covid-19
A maternity transitional care support worker has praised her colleagues for the care they gave her when she was diagnosed with coronavirus.
Kelly, a 41-year-old mother of three from Guildford, began to feel unwell in March before the full extent of the pandemic was realised.
Describing her symptoms, Kelly, who suffers from asthma, says the first indication of something being wrong was a headache and a feeling of confusion.
This soon spiraled and Kelly developed a very high temperature and shortness of breath.
"I was completely drained and very scared.
"I felt exhausted just getting up to visit the bathroom and I felt like I was going to stop breathing and take my last breath", said Kelly.
After taking a turn for the worse, Kelly attended the Emergency Department at the Trust, where she underwent a variety of tests and scans that came back positive for coronavirus.
"The organisation of the Emergency Department was outstanding.
"Everyone knew their role, and everyone was looking out for one another.
"Everything was done very efficiently and was explained to me thoroughly – I felt very cared for" said Kelly.
Kelly spent three weeks in isolation at home with her husband and three daughters.
"The Emergency Department consultant who cared for me even called the next day to check on me.
Offering some advice to people that may be worried about experiencing symptoms, Kelly said: "if you have trouble breathing, try not to worry as this makes your heart race and breathing worse - keep calm and seek medical assistance.
"It is so important to give yourself time to recover afterwards and not to pressure yourself to get back to normal too quickly - it may be a while before you can do everything you did before."
Dr Monica Minardi, Consultant and Clinical Lead for the Emergency Department, said: "The Emergency Department is here for everyone who feels they need urgent treatment and people should not be reluctant to come to us because of Covid-19.
"The department is well-prepared, and everything is planned in order to protect people and staff from infection."
Kelly has now fully recovered and is back full time in her role as a maternity transitional care support worker at the Trust.