Published 8 August 2022
Parking staff who helped to save a man’s life have been honoured with an award.
The team at the William Harvey Hospital were presented with a Golden Heart badge and certificate by managers at East Kent Hospitals Trust to thank them for their dedication.
They sprang into action after a man was driven to the hospital experiencing all the symptoms of a heart attack.
Parking manager Dean Davidson said: “We received a radio message that a car was being sent up to the blue badge car park as the passenger seemed to be having a heart attack.
“I was in the car park at the time and asked one of my colleagues to go into the emergency department to alert a nurse.
“When I spotted the car I directed it to park outside the emergency department entrance, and a nurse came out with a wheelchair.
“There was no reaction or movement from the elderly male passenger and he looked in a bad way.”
The nurse borrowed a special board from a nearby ambulance crew and Dean and colleague Andrew Levett helped her lift the man out of the car. He was rushed straight into the hospital for treatment.
Dean said: “Later that day I checked on the man’s condition and was told he had experienced a massive heart attack but had survived.
"It was humbling to know as a team we had played a small part in helping to save his life.
“People sometimes think our role is just to issue tickets but there is so much more to the job than that – primarily we are there to make sure everyone can park safely and get to where they need to be.
“We can make a positive difference to people’s experience of our hospitals by providing a friendly and welcoming presence and, occasionally as with this case, we can even help save lives.”
Golden Hearts recognise unsung heroes across East Kent Hospitals, and are awarded on a rolling basis throughout the year. Staff nominate their colleagues who go the extra mile, and all nominations receive a certificate, with a handful of stand-out entries receiving the badge as well.
As well as the parking team, the latest recipients included the Trust’s patient experience team, and matrons Ed Curtin, from theatres at the Kent and Canterbury Hospital, and Lynne Hadley from ophthalmology.
The patient experience team were recognised for helping out in other teams during the pandemic, in addition to their own work helping patients with queries and concerns. They provided a vital single point of contact for relatives of critical care patients who were transferred to other Trusts, and set up the popular ‘message to a loved one’ service; delivering more than 1,500 messages and thousands of photos to patients.
Theatres matron Ed Curtin was nominated by a colleague who said he had helped them to enjoy their work again, while ophthalmology matron Lynne Hadley was praised for her dedication to her patients, making sure they understand their procedures, and for her support of staff.
