The Queen Elizabeth Hospital King’s Lynn returns to the big screen this week in a prime-time Channel 4 documentary that will show the NHS’s incredible response to Coronavirus.
The one-off documentary, called ‘NHS Heroes: Fighting to Save Our Lives’, features the hospital’s Chief Executive Caroline Shaw and Matron Karon Strong, alongside NHS frontline staff across the UK. It will also pay tribute to the long-serving QEH Healthcare Assistant Chrissie Emerson, who died several weeks ago in Critical Care at the hospital after testing positive for COVID-19; which has had a devastating impact on staff at QEH.
Filmed on their smartphones, the programme will show the moving stories of several brave NHS workers in the thick of the fight against Coronavirus. The hour-long film will tell their stories as well as highlighting the challenges the NHS heroes face every day.
Caroline Shaw, QEH Chief Executive, said: “I am so proud of how our staff have responded to COVID-19 and our unrelenting focus on delivering safe and compassionate care to our patients during what I can only describe as some of the toughest months of my career. Our staff have more than stepped up to the challenge and we thought it important to give our local community and wider country an insight into what it has been like for us all, and how we have done all we can – midst these worrying and anxious times – to listen and support our staff recognising their lives inside and outside of work have been turned upside down.”
Karon Strong, Matron for our Medicine Division, has been caring for patients and supporting staff on our COVID wards. She said: “These last few months have been hugely difficult – with many families not able to visit and spend precious time with their loved ones and for our staff who are doing a fantastic job in the most challenging of circumstances and pushing themselves to their limits. Never have I been so proud to be a matron, but what I have witnessed in recent months has been heart-breaking and has taken its toll on us all both physically and emotionally.”
Danny Horan, head of factual at Channel 4, said: “This series takes a front seat showing us the challenges they face every day in the battle against Coronavirus. We celebrate their dedication and see the true nature of their sacrifice, with many having to be away from their own families to keep the British public safe. Shining a light on our NHS heroes fighting on the frontline.”
The programme received praise in previews over the weekend and was highlighted by most of the national newspapers as the pick of the day. Produced by Story Films, it will air on Channel 4 on Wednesday 6 May at 9pm. You can read an article in yesterday’s Sunday Telegraph from Caroline here and view the trailer here.
–ENDS–
Download the press release and photo here.
QEH Media Hub 