“It was like a miracle” – patient praises hospital teams

29 April 2022 - Margaret Mann, 85, was able to visit her dying sister-in-law despite a broken arm

Margaret Mann was on her way from her home in East London to visit her sister-in-law, Judy, at King George Hospital in Ilford, when she fell over at Upton Park Station, breaking her arm in two places.

Sadly, she then received a call from Dr Nirooshi Nagarajah at King George Hospital who was caring for Judy to say that she was near the end of her life and Margaret should come to say goodbye.

At the time, Margaret was being helped by passers-by, one of whom was Dr Kavya Pillai from King’s College Hospital, who was on her way home from a night shift. Both doctors spoke over the phone and agreed the best course of action would be to get Margaret to King George Hospital in a cab, where she could be looked over before seeing Judy.

Margaret said: “I was in a lot of pain and as soon as I got there they x-rayed it and put my arm in a sling. It was broken in two places. Once it was supported I was able to go and see Judy on the ward. She opened her eyes and looked at me and I asked if she was okay, she said yes. I spent a long time with her and they called me later that day to say that she had died. Given everything that happened, it was like a miracle – especially that when I was in pain at the station a doctor came along.”

After seeing Judy, Margaret received treatment for her arm, and she’s due to start physiotherapy. She added: “I’m a very active person so I’m glad it’s on the mend now, the pain at the time was so bad it was like torture.”

Dr Kavya Pillai from King’s College Hospital said: “I’m glad to hear Margaret is doing well. It was a real team effort looking after her at the station. The Transport for London staff helped me organise some of the logistics, as well as getting Margaret a nice cup of strong tea to help keep her warm.

“There were also some lovely members of the public who helped catch her when she fell and stayed to comfort her.”

“We managed to get Margaret to King George’s Hospital in a cab with a make-shift sling made from a scarf in the hopes she could say her final goodbyes to her sister-in-law.”

Dr Nirooshi Nagarajah, who had been caring for Margaret’s sister-in-law Judy said: “It was awful for Margaret to break her arm on her way to our hospital, so we wanted to do everything we could to make her comfortable so she could spend some precious time with Judy in the hours before she died. It’s lovely to hear how much it meant to her, and that her arm appears to now be on the mend.”