As we reach the end of our time off for Ride to the Rock I want to thank my bosses at Harrogate District Hospital Intensive Care Unit for their incredible support.

I took this time as a mix of annual leave and unpaid leave. It is a lot of time away from the unit and off the roster. My being away adds to pressure on management and staff to cover my absence and it’s right that I acknowledge that. It’s a tough time in the NHS and has been for a long while now. To support me and through that Médecins Sans Frontières is nothing short of outstanding.

I am extremely lucky to work in a place where the bosses truly value the work of Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders and want to help. I will also say that I feel valued by them too and that is a great feeling.

I am back at work on Monday 1st August. Hopefully I can still remember how to plug in a ventilator! If not, I know I have the very best of colleagues to help me.

Special thanks to:

Linda Cross, Eve Geldert, Amanda Russell and Jenny Nolan