Michael Rosen on his recovery from COVID-19

We were privileged to welcome Michael Rosen, children’s author and poet, to a virtual talk with our students.

Earlier this year Michael contracted COVID-19 and spent seven weeks in intensive care, six of them on a ventilator. He shared his service-user perspective on what it was like to be critically ill with COVID-19, the role of the ICU patient diary in his ongoing recovery and his admiration for the NHS.

More than 50 students studying on our BSc, GradCert, and PGCert in Clinical Practice courses joined the session.

Michael was very candid about his journey from intensive care, to the time spent recovering on a ward through to his time in rehabilitation and ongoing recovery.

Michael shared his patient diary which he described as “very, very special”. The diary gives critical care patients information and insight into a time when they were not aware and is completed by nurses, allied health professionals and doctors to record patients’ daily events, with some places also facilitating family members and friends visiting to make diary entries.

Michael read excerpts from his diary including from a nurse who mentioned the apt poem he had written for the 60^th anniversary of the NHS entitled These are the Hands. He said how incredibly moving reading the diary entries is and the overwhelming devotion from staff it demonstrates.

Lecturer Dr Heather Baid said: “The students are still talking about Michael’s stories long after the event. I’ve also received email feedback from staff and ICU colleagues who found the talk really useful and plan to use it within their education days to promote patient diaries.

“We were really honoured that he took the time to share his experiences with us.”

Be inspired by watching a recording of the session with Michael Rosen.