Our 90-year-old mum was admitted to the Cedar ward after spending time with the A&E and Willow wards. Gigarin treated our mum with respect and despite being 90 didn’t assume she was senile, which she wasn’t.

Our mum became severely dehydrated – it was very hot in the ward, and the weather had been overly hot too, which hadn’t helped. The registrar had a struggle finding a viable vein, but Gigarin kept a calm approach and managed to find a vein to insert a cannula. As our mum took a final breath, I informed him and, despite doing a drug round, came immediately to support us and check that our mum had passed.

He was always there in the background, working hard and being a caring, empathetic nurse.

Thank you, Gigarin. Continue doing what you are excellent at and obviously a natural at. Respect, empathy, calmness, and loyalty to your patients cannot be bought, but you possess all in abundance.