Covid 19

Coronavirus Diptychs -

Intensive Care Unit doctor Janitha Gowribalan works at The Whittington Hospital, in London.

"A man in his 50's is struggling to breathe, so we have to quickly make lifesaving, unavoidable decisions to induce a coma and place him on a ventilator. He’s frightened and asking for us to ring his wife and children. He’s struggling to speak through his tight-fitted mask but, if he takes it off, his oxygen levels will plummet. It’s upsetting telling him it’s not possible for us to call his family now. I think about how terrified I would feel if I couldn’t speak to my parents in his position. We have to act fast as his oxygen levels dramatically fall when we induce the coma – this is normal and we expect it, but it still feels frightening. If it falls too low, a person can go into respiratory or cardiac arrest."

Date: 24 March 2020

Coronavirus Diptychs -

Paramedic Sarah Blanchard works with Essex ambulance service. Photographed at Whipps Cross Hospital, in London.

"A crucial part of my job is to calm and reassure the terrified people whose lives we are trying to save. As we speed to the hospital in the back of an ambulance, I hold their hands during what is one of the most frightening times in their lives. What I can’t bear about treating those infected with Covid-19 is having to keep my distance as their panic-stricken eyes search my face for signs of what’s to come. The truth is, I don’t know. Nobody does. Some of the patients I have taken to hospital have got better, some of them have not."

Date: 24 March 2020

Coronavirus Diptychs -

A&E doctor Rosena Alli Khan works at St Georges Hospital, in London. She is also a Labour MP.

"The coronavirus death rate in this country is going up by the day and we – the NHS workers – are worried. There’s a huge sense of sadness and trepidation among us all. Colleagues are messaging me at 2am saying their minds are whizzing and they can’t sleep. On my way home from the hospital, I call ahead to tell my family not to let my two little girls, who are five and six, run up to hug me at the door. Before I can be with them, I have to shower and wash my clothes. All the time I’m terrified of spreading the infection to the people I love."

Date: 24 March 2020

Coronavirus Diptychs -

A&E Senior Nurse Richenda Browne works at Kings College Hospital, in London.

"Last week, when a woman distraught with grief came to the hospital and told me she was desperate to see her husband, I had to be blunt about the risks to her health. She told me her son had begged her not to come but her husband was dying and she had to be by his side. Helping families who can’t be together in these moments is upsetting. I stay strong for my patients at work, but at home, on rare days off, I process everything. We need to think of innovative ways for people to communicate with patients in isolation, such as using video calls to say goodbye. I’m also finding it challenging to show empathy through protective equipment and masks – I rely so heavily on my facial expressions."

Date: 26 March 2020

Coronavirus Diptychs -

Sandra Obike, Head of Design & Technology at Swanlea School arranged for 100 visors to be created for staff at the Royal London Hospital. The visors will protect doctors and nurses from the risk of infection, as they work to treat patients who are suffering with Covid 19.

“A lot of my family members and friends work within the NHS, as doctors and nurses. My mum is retired, but is still helping out in a care home. As technologists, we’re problem-solvers – we try to work around the issue, and find a way to do things.”

“There has been a lot of teamwork, social media has mobilised our effort, on a national scale. People have shared design templates and materials for free. Where there is surplus, we’ll try to logistically pass it around the network across Britain. Seeing the sheer numbers of people and how they have contributed – that’s when it hits home how amazing this is.”

“As a teacher, this is a small thing I can do, so that someone who’s potentially putting their life at risk can go into a safer situation at work, and do something big. Everyone is working together for that common goal. It goes to show how much we love the NHS”

Date: 30 April 2020

Coronavirus Diptychs -

Rebecca Bailey is helping run Furlonteer, which pairs people who have been Furloughed during the Coronavirus Pandemic, to volunteer therir skills to charities and NGO's around the world.

“We had 1,000 people volunteer in the first 48 hours, and the charities came in thick and fast.” Rebecca is putting together a team to help her match the right volunteer with the right charity or community project based on their skills. With an estimated seven in ten businesses furloughing staff, according to the British Chamber of Commerce, there are a lot of skilled employees with time on their hands who can donate their time to work remotely."

“We’re asking for whatever time you can give. Charities don’t always need huge commitments. Somebody who has the right skills can probably spend a couple of hours a week putting together social media posts, something which might take a charity weeks to get around to,” says Rebecca.

Date: 30 April 2020

Coronavirus Diptychs -

Anna K. Blakney is a bioengineer at Imperial college London. She is working on a RNA designed Covid - 19 Vaccine, which is in clinical trials.

"We heard whispers about coronavirus being this infectious in December, but I was sceptical at first. A few weeks later the switch flipped, and it was full steam ahead. I started adapting work I was doing on rabies and influenza to work on this. Along with my team, I have designed and made the coronavirus vaccine and tested how well it works in animals. After that it gets passed over to human testing. The good news is it seems to work really well. I like being able to reassure people: it’s going to happen."

Date: 7 April 2020

Coronavirus Diptychs -

Katie Ewer is a Senior Immunologist at the Jenner Institute, University of Oxford. She has developed vaccines for Maleria, ebola and Mers and is in clinical trials stage for a covid- 19 vaccine.

"We started designing the vaccine as soon as China released the genetic sequence of the virus in January – back when none of us imagined how far it could possibly spread. Creating a vaccine this fast has never been done before, ever. We’ve also never designed a clinical trial during an outbreak before and implementing social distancing in the lab has been a first. We use a tape measure to make sure we’re two metres apart.

My team is really well-represented by women. Heavily female teams feel different; there seems to be more collaboration and less ego. Science can be competitive, but if one of the 40-odd labs working on this around the world gets there first, we’ll just be relieved someone has succeeded."

Date: 6 April 2020

Coronavirus Diptychs -

Rebecca Kinsley is a Virologist at Cambridge university Infectious Diseases research centre.

Photographed at the department of Vetranary medicine, Laboratory of Viral Zoonotics .

"My life has felt like a bit of a dress rehearsal leading up to this moment. As a student, I gave presentations on pandemics and I’ve been deeply engrossed in work around how we would respond to one ever since. In an abstract way, I’ve been thinking about this moment for years. But now it’s real it feels daunting. I’m slightly in shock, but not surprised.

As I drive to work along the emptied roads, it’s strange reminding myself: this is it. It’s happening now. The college greens where students usually gather are eerily silent. Only those working on Covid-19 remain at work. Trying to contribute to something so huge globally gives me a sense of responsibility and it’s reassuring to work with a strong team. We just wish that there were more hours in the day for us to do it in.”

Date: 4 April 2020