1 April 2021

Student nurse Poppy Monks, who completed one of her university placements with Frimley Health, recalls how eye opening her first day working in an ICU bay with Covid patients was.

“As a student nurse, it was difficult choosing to opt-in to an extended placement because I was worried about bringing the virus home but, at the same time, it felt like an incredible learning opportunity. I started my first placement last May and, despite being on an elderly care ward, I was really surprised when I saw a younger person. Everyone expects Covid-19 to affect elderly people and those with co-morbidities but this patient was young and healthy.”

“I'm now on placement in intensive care and, for first time, someone I'd been caring for passed away. We'd done everything we could, but they were just so poorly that they weren't going to get better. Their family came in and got to say their goodbyes but didn’t want to be there when the person passed away. Another nurse and I held the patient's hand as they took their last breaths. It's right that they weren't alone.”

“The nurses around me have been so supportive, asking me if I need anything and checking I'm OK.. It's been really hard, but it's taught me so much. There's pressure, and at times it's been physically and mentally exhausting. But in a sense, it's also been empowering. When you're holding a dying person's hand in intensive care during a pandemic, you don't feel like a student. You feel like a nurse. And I've decided I want to be an intensive care nurse.”