As a baby, respiratory nurse Leanne Riddell's life was saved by the NHS, then decades later she saw a friend die of Covid during the early stages of the pandemic.
She loves her job and - now a ward sister - the Wallsend mum, 33, told ChronicleLive what it means to be a NHS worker, why looking after others means so much to her, and how losing a friend and fellow nurse to Covid hit hard and was "really scary". Speaking during the week of the NHS's 75th birthday, she said she was "so proud" to be part of the health service.
Leanne's life came full circle when she qualified as a nurse - 22 years after the NHS staff at the Royal Victoria Infirmary saved her life amid an epidemic of the potentially-lethal disease bronchiolitis in babies across the North. Darlington-born, when she fell ill she had to be sent to the RVI.
