Intensive Care Unit

A patient who arrived at the Royal Berkshire Hospital “perilously close to death” has nominated the Intensive Care Unit team for the Health Worker of the Year award, sponsored by Clearview Intelligence.

“I awoke after my surgery in a terrible state, both physically and mentally, a mass of tubes and dressings, and totally dependent on others to keep me going,” the nominator said. “At one stage I was on the verge of telling everyone to just let me slip away.”

What followed was a level of compassion and determination that transformed their outlook.

“First one nurse, and then a procession of others came to my bedside and spoke to me,” the nominator recalled. “The message was: ‘If you think you’re here to die, you’ve come to the wrong place. Now let’s sit you up and get you moving about, and you’ll soon feel different.’”

Over the next month, the ICU team provided round-the-clock care, helping the patient regain strength, confidence and hope.

“Twenty-four hours a day, their care rebuilt me, physically and mentally, to the point where I could eventually go home,” they said.

Although cancer treatment is continuing, the nominator says their life is now “almost back to normal.”

“Our NHS is the best in the world,” they added. “The RBH team is the best of the best.”