London ICU staff on emotional toll of virus wards

Medical staff working in the intensive care unit of a London hospital have said the younger age of COVID-19 patients is making them fear for themselves and their loved ones.

"In the first wave (...) I remember thinking, that could be mum, that could be my aunt, said respiratory physiotherapist Clare Bendall, who works at Barnet Hospital in north London.

Now I'm thinking, that could be me, that could be my brother, my boyfriend, she told British broadcaster Sky News, tearing up. Bendall added that the number of daily deaths was proving difficult to deal with. The worst thing is when we do our ward books in the morning and it's when the amount of RIPs (Rest in Peace, deceased patients) outnumbers the ones that have made it down to the ward, and that's when it really kicks in.

Intensive care nurse Harriet Goudie spoke of having to talk to families and reassure them, but at the same time, you have patients that are sadly passing away in literally the bay opposite. Patients have, however, been recovering too.

Nicolae Ursachi, who spent 40 days on a ventilator, has reached a point in his recovery where he can start moving again and is learning to stand and walk.It's also been going well for Dima Hooper, a caterer for the U.K's National Health Service.She was doing better a week after being hospitalized with COVID-19, sitting up and giving a thumbs up to Sky News' reporter.The U.K. has endured Europe's deadliest coronavirus outbreak, and the nation reported 1,245 more virus-linked deaths Friday to bring its tally in the pandemic to over 104,000.