Derry junior doctor Kyle Crawford
Kyle Crawford, who was based at the cancer centre in Belfast City Hospital, volunteered to work in the unit for critically-ill Covid-19 patients at the same hospital’s Tower Block.
The Tower Block has a 230-bed capacity for Coronavirus patients to help ease the pressure on the Mater Hospital which has been the main COVID-19 treatment cente.
Dr Crawford told BBC Radio Foyle: “Initially, there was a human reaction in me that I might be placing myself in increased risk but I rationalised that very quickly.
“Everyone is working together in a way that I have not seen before.
“The camaraderie, team work and sense of purpose is really palpable.”
The junior doctor said all staff were given adequate PPE equipment and they were all using it appropriately.
“The most reassuring thing for me is that most patients I see with COVID-19 are getting better, people are coming out of ICU,” he added.
Dr Crawford urged the public to “stick with the lockdown” and “keep protecting the NHS”.
As of Sunday, April 19, 194 people being treated in hospitals here for the deadly virus had sadly lost their lives.
