Comfort message from Covid-19 ward: ‘We are your loved one’s surrogate family’

Kathryn Owen, who represents the Rowallane area on Newry, Mourne and Down Council, had been studying for a PhD but last month decided to offer her services as the Covid-19 crisis deepened.

She has been heartened by the number of patients who are now on their way to a full recovery, but said the families of those who have died can take heart from an assurance that their loved ones were surrounded by loving care.

“We are always going to be there and their loved one is never going to be alone,” Cllr Owen said.

“There are days when you sit with people as they pass and that is very, very difficult.”

The former RAF medic said the bonds that are forged on the Covid-19 wards means the ward staff are a kind of “surrogate family” for the worst affected.

“We are more used to a situation where we take a step back at those times and let the family sit with them, but unfortunately that can’t happen at the moment.

“It creates a mixed bag of emotions...but families can be reassured that their loved one is going to have someone with them who genuinely cares and who will treat them as one of their own family.

“To be there, holding that loved one’s hand is not something that would normally happen and your heart just totally breaks for those families who have found themselves in this situation.

“We do the best that we can to be a surrogate family at that time.”

Mrs Owen said she can’t praise her colleagues highly enough for their devotion to duty while working in very difficult conditions.

“We are also working from head to toe in PPE and sweating profusely,” she said.

“We are a really tight team, from the consultants to the domestics who are all equally important. There is a lot of banter and we can still have a laugh.

“I chose to go on to that ward...and it really is such a privilege to be able to be there...and to be able to comfort patients when they are at their most vulnerable.

“We are doing our best to show compassionate empathy with just our eyes. What we are going to do is put nice, smiley pictures of ourselves on a name badge so at least the patients know what we look like underneath the PPE.”

Shortly before speaking to the News Letter on Wednesday, Cllr Owen posted a picture of herself in full PPE, along with a tribute to her “hero” colleagues.

She said: “On these glorious warm sunny days, please spare a thought for my colleagues who are top to toe in this gear working hard on already warm wards. Once this gear goes on, you can’t remove it even for a sip of water.

“I am only on my third week of wearing this gear, but some of my colleagues are on week seven, and it is starting to take its toll.

“They are my friends AND my heroes, so can I ask you to give an extra #clapforcarers tomorrow as the heat builds.”