Brighton nurse helps 'terrified' patients in Covid-19 red ward

Samantha Margerison, 57, works in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton.

She said patients and nurses have been struggling to overcome the barrier of dehumanising full-body protective kit – and how she has come up with a way to help.

“Our patients are scared,” Samantha said. “They’re in an unfamiliar environment.

“The staff there to heal them look like characters from a science fiction film.

NHS staff in PPE at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton

“When I go into a Covid-19 ICU I’m donning a gown, gloves, a mask and a face shield. The respirator mask makes our faces impossible to see and muffles our voices.

“Making a connection is lost and that’s such an important part of supporting our patients.”

But from a room in her flat in Hove, armed with a printer and laminator, Samantha has been making name badges for staff to clip above their aprons, complete with a smiling photo of the wearer in casual clothes.

Patients and medics wearing full personal protective equipment (PPE) can now recognise familiar faces.

She calls her creation the Cov-ID. It’s bigger, clearer, and friendlier than the nurses’ official IDs and it is making a difference.

“Just by sticking this thing on the front makes patients feel there’s a person behind all that clutter,” Samantha said.

Orders are streaming in from hospitals around the country and Samantha is now making so many badges she has had to set up a fundraiser for the costs of printing and postage.

"I was passionate that no healthcare professional should have to pay anything to get one,” Samantha said.

“We’re already paying huge amounts in physical, mental and emotional energy and unfortunately many of us are also paying with our lives.”

The connection the badges bring is all the more important because ICU patients with coronavirus are often unable to see relatives.

“People are dying without their family there,” Samantha said. “As nurses we’re with them. We hold their hand and make them as comfortable as possible.”

The badges also help the team come together under pressure. The atmosphere in the ICU is calm but intense. Patients are hooked up to ventilators and monitors.

Nurses have been drafted in to help with a practice called proning, laying patients on their front to oxygenate the bloodstream. It requires concentration and many hands at work.

“We go about everything in a steady fashion,” Samantha said. “But when I get in, I’m anxious. I’m not sure where I’m going to be needed and I don’t know what I’m going to face. The most important thing that gets me through a shift is the team.”

NHS staff in PPE at the Royal Sussex County Hospital in Brighton

Some of the staff have never been on a critical care unit before. Samantha said: “There are so many new faces. Even with colleagues you’ve known for years, it’s hard to recognise them under their masks.

“Seeing a big ID badge on the front makes a difference, making sure they know your name and you know theirs.

“You learn over life that a gentle touch, a kind word, a smile can communicate so much. And those things have been stolen from us by the PPE we need to wear. The Cov-IDs will not replace that, but they will help.”

You can donate to Samantha’s fundraiser at www.gofundme.com/f/help-provide-id-badges-for-healthcare-workers

• Local newspapers across Newsquest are joining forces to raise money for workers at the frontline of the healthcare crisis. Please donate whatever you can, and let us give a collective, united message to our NHS workers of our huge appreciation for their efforts. You can get involved and support our campaign by sharing our appeal and telling us why you are thankful for the NHS #ThankYouNHS on social media using the link: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-our-nhs-guardian-angels.