Hey guys! My name is Helen and I am a second-year nursing student at BU. Since my placements were suspended due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 virus, I have been working as a health care assistant at the hospital. I have been working on a variety of wards; some with Covid-19 and others without. To begin with, I was worried about the virus and fearful that I would pass it on to my family. However, as the days went on, I felt more and more privileged to be a part of the team supporting those in need at this time.

On this particular day, I was heading into a patient’s (Sophie, anonymised for confidentiality) room with three other members of staff. The nurse in charge asked us to come back into the hallway to take part in a one-minute silence at 11am for the health care workers who have passed away due to the virus. I explained to Sophie that we would be popping outside for the one-minute silence and asked her if it was okay for us to do so. However, as 11am was approaching, we decided we were unable to leave Sophie and therefore, decided to take part in the one-minute silence all together in her room.

Sophie suggested putting the TV on because they would be covering other hospitals on the local news channel. 11am came and we all stopped what we were doing and Sophie said, ‘let’s all hold hands’. Her sentence took my breath away and I genuinely shed a tear. The four of us stood around the bed holding hands with each other and Sophie. We stood in silence and all I could think about was how lucky I am to be healthy, to be in a position to be able to help and of those who have passed. After the minutes silence, Sophie thanked us all for looking after her, especially during this time.

Sadly, Covid-19 is affecting every single one of us in one way or another, through ill health, knowing someone with the virus or because we are away from our friends, family, school or job. I am so incredibly proud to be part of the NHS, supporting my community and those who need our care.

I hope you are all keeping safe xx