‘I’m really glad I did it’ – Iona shares her ICU redeployment story
“I’ve worked in Theatres in Derby since 1998, so this is my first step into this line of work in my whole career.”
Iona Pegg has worked for the NHS in Derby for more than 20 years, both as a Healthcare Assistant and in Theatres, but she volunteered to be redeployed into our Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at Royal Derby Hospital in October 2020.
Iona’s first role in Theatres began in 1998 when she joined the team at the Derby Royal Infirmary as a Student Operating Department Practitioner (ODP) and qualifying in 2000, before moving to the Derby City Hospital site, now Royal Derby Hospital, in 2009.
Iona has remained in general theatres ever since, but felt compelled to help her colleagues in ICU as the second wave hit late last year:
“I didn’t come into ICU in the first wave and when the chance arose this time around, I really wanted to help. I also didn’t want colleagues who had volunteered during the first wave to feel they had to do so again, so I thought that if I could do anything to help then I would.”
Working in Theatres has given Iona valuable experience of caring for very sick patients, but she said that nothing could quite prepare her for caring with patients with Covid-19:
“We often look after seriously ill patients in theatre, so I have experience in intubating and scanning, but I’ve never seen anything like this. However, my experience stood me in good stead so I wasn’t too daunted or frightened coming in to this environment.
“There are times when we have struggled and it is harder when you get to know the patients. A lot of the time now, because of what we’ve learned about treating those with Covid-19, patients aren’t intubated, so we really get to know them and sometimes it can be really tough to see them deteriorate.”
Despite the challenges her redeployment has brought, Iona says the ICU team have been there for her at every turn, and that she has learned a lot from her time on the unit:
“It is really hard to put it into words as to how the whole experience has been, but from day one, everyone is ICU has been phenomenal and we’ve been extremely well supported.
“It has been tough but I have loved working in ICU – it’s a really good challenge. There have been hard times and some tears, but there has also been a lot of laughs which just shows how caring and supportive the team here are.
“I’m really glad that I did it and I’ve learned huge amounts. The staff here are amazing and I’m in awe of them; they have opened their arms to us.”