Eve Davies
Sunday 12th September 2021 sees 57,000 dedicated and determined runners take part in the 40th Great North Run.
The Great North Run is the world’s biggest half marathon. It is an annual event that takes place in North East England every September. The road route stretches between Newcastle Upon Tyne and South Shields. The run was devised by by former Olympian and BBC Sports Commentator Brendan Foster.
This year, as a special thank you for all their hard work during the pandemic, four NHS heroes will kickstart the run. Each of the Great Run’s regions’ trusts have nominated a member of staff to represent the altruistic efforts of all health and care staff in the fight against Covid-19. Being nominated to run 13.1 miles as a reward sounds great, right?
“I think I speak for the whole country when I say the heroic efforts of the National Health Service are something we should all pay tribute to.”
South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust nominated Consultant Cardiologist, Dr Mickey Jachuck. Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust nominated Senior Sister of the Royal Infirmary, Jade Trewick. Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust put forward Community Nurse, Dorathy Oparaeche. Finally, Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust nominated Occupational Health Lead, Deborah Southworth, from the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
Organisers of the annual event said: “As we celebrate four incredible decades of fundraising, individual endurance and collective triumph it was also very important for us to say a Great North THANK YOU to the entire nation, for their efforts during the pandemic.
“With the support of proud partner HSBC UK, we want to recognise the incredible individual efforts of some of those who went above and beyond to help others, as well as every single one of you who stayed home, made space, and changed your daily lives for the good of our communities.”
Founder of the Great North Run, Sir Brendan Foster said, “I think I speak for the whole country when I say the heroic efforts of the National Health Service are something we should all pay tribute to.
“I think we all knew it would be a huge challenge, but it lasted much longer than anyone anticipated.”
“Historically, our starters have been public figures who have achieved great things in their chosen fields, but this year, there is no-one who deserves that honour more than the staff of the NHS, who worked so hard to care for our communities under such difficult circumstances.”
Dr Mickey Jachuck worked on Covid admission and inpatient wards in addition to his work as a Consultant Cardiologist. Alongside his team, he provided 24/7 care for sufferers of Covid, many of whom had developed severe respiratory failure and were critically ill. He said, “As always, NHS people came together and everyone supported each other to try and meet the demand. I think we all knew it would be a huge challenge, but it lasted much longer than anyone anticipated.”
“They were the hand to hold, albeit through PPE.”
Sister Jade Terwick worked a vital role at Ward 42, a ward that was created in just 12 weeks to care for patients with severe Covid infection. She said, “You want to do everything right – you often feel like you’re not doing enough and you always want to do more – but then you remind yourself that we’re only human and we can only do our best.”
At pandemic peaks, Jade and her colleagues were the only people who could provide any physical contact with patients. They were the hand to hold, albeit through PPE.
“These were not numbers. They were relatives, friends, sisters, brothers. I found that really heart-breaking.”
As a community nurse, Dorathy Oparaeche looked after chronic patients and vulnerable citizens in their own homes. She described going out to patients who didn’t really know what was going on and who were potentially Covid positive as “nerve wracking”.
She added: “I would watch the news every day and listen to people talk about deaths as numbers and I’d go into the toilet and cry. These were not numbers. They were relatives, friends, sisters, brothers, I found that really heart-breaking.”
At her hospital, Deborah Southworth recognised the tremendous stress the frontline were under. With her team, she began to put initiatives in place to help staff through what were inevitably some of the hardest days of their career. Deborah said, “There was a team of us that decided staff needed somewhere to go, so we came up with the Sanctuary Rooms. They became a refuge where people could collect their thoughts and have a bit of me time during a hectic day on the wards.
“We have our work family, and the QE is very good about making sure people are supported, but it’s not the same as being with your family.”
The Great North Run is televised live on BBC Two between 08:30 – 09:30 on Sunday 12th September before coverage moves over to BBC One until 13:30.
Featured image courtesy of Rob Wilson on Unsplash. Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
evedaviess
Eve is 22 years old and lives in Swansea. She has recently graduated from Cardiff University with a BA in English Literature. Eve's main interest is in lifestyle writing, particularly health, food, and travel.