Gran thanks colleagues after stroke at hospital

A hospital worker who suffered a stroke during a night shift said she thought it was "the end" before colleagues saved her.

Marian Davies, a maternity support worker for 36 years, was in the Royal Stoke University Hospital delivery suite when she lost her speech and movement.

Her colleagues gave her first aid while calling for help before the 70-year-old was taken to the emergency department where a CT scan confirmed the stroke.

The grandmother-of-three, from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, said she remembered she was talking to the incoming day staff team when she "suddenly could not speak" and slumped down in her chair.

She said her colleagues were asking what was wrong but she could not talk back.

She added: "I didn't feel any pain but remember thinking: 'Am I having a stroke and is this the end?'

"The next thing I knew, the stroke team and paramedics arrived."

Ms Davies spent two weeks in hospital after the stroke on 20 October and has since been recovering at home, ahead of a hoped for return to work, on a part-time basis, later this year.

She said she was 95% better and felt "really proud" of her maternity colleagues.

"They are amazing bunch of people, not just in their jobs but personally too," she added.

"I can't thank them enough. If it wasn't for them acting so quickly, I wouldn't be here today."

Her daughter, Hannah Davies-Platt, is a matron for quality and safety with the University Hospitals of North Midlands (UHNM) NHS Trust, which runs the hospital.

She said if her mum had been at home, it could have been a different outcome.

"The midwives' professionalism and kindness was incredible. I'm so grateful for everything they did that night looking after mum," she said.

"They treated her like a family member and we owe them so much."

The staff involved in Mr Davies's care were recently presented with the trust's chief executive award in recognition of their actions.

Dr Simon Constable, the chief executive, said he was "thrilled" to present the honour, adding their story "struck at the heart of everything about care and compassion".

Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.