A second nurse at the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle has died after contracting COVID-19, it was announced today (Monday 4th May).
Cecilia Fashanu, 63, had been receiving critical care for a number of weeks before she died at the hospital on Thursday evening. She had been an agency nurse covering shifts on wards at the Cumberland Infirmary over the last two years.
Her son Anthony said: “Mum was passionate about people, helping others, selfless and always willing to go out of her way to ensure everyone was comfortable. Nothing was too much for mum. Even at times when she was tired and we asked her to take a break, she would always say ‘I’m ok, God gives me strength’.
“Mum is our Superwoman, an extraordinary woman, devoted Christian. #Supermum #Superhero. God bless you and all the nurses, doctors and all other staff at the hospital. Please pass my gratitude, on behalf of myself and my family, to everyone who looked after my mum.”
Cecilia’s death follows the loss of a 49-year-old agency nurse at the Cumberland Infirmary to coronavirus last month. The name of the married father-of-four, from London, has not been released. Fellow NHS worker Simon Guest, a radiographer at Furness General Hospital in Barrow, had also died from coronavirus the week before.
Lyn Simpson is chief executive of North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the Cumberland Infirmary. Announcing the latest tragedy, she said: “It is with deep sadness that I have to inform you that a second colleague of ours recently passed away after contracting COVID-19.
“Cecilia will be sorely missed by her husband and children. We are speaking with her family, offering our deepest condolences at this incredibly difficult time. She was a much loved colleague and her death is felt across the organisation as a whole.”
The North Cumbria trust provide hospital and community health services to a population of around 500,000 and employs more than 6,500 staff.
