Coronavirus: Nurse calls ambos but dies from virus before paramedics arrive

A nurse who was “feeling better” after having COVID-19 took a turn at home and called an ambo for help. But paramedics made a shock discovery.

A hero nurse who was sick with coronavirus called an ambulance for help, helpfully leaving her front door open – but tragically she was already dead when paramedics arrived.

Rebecca Mack, 29, is the 14th frontline health worker in the UK who has been killed by the virus after dying at home on Sunday, The Sun reports.

Her heartbroken mum Marion has now revealed Rebecca had told her and dad Alan she was “feeling better” at around 6pm the night she died.

When she failed to reply to a message at 10pm, Marion assumed she had gone to sleep — not knowing her daughter had taken a turn for the worse.

Rebecca was a children’s nurse at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary before more recently taking a job with NHS 111. Picture: The Sun

Marion (right) wasn’t allowed to say goodbye to her daughter Rebecca (left). Picture: Facebook

Rebecca had called paramedics and left the front door open, but by the time they arrived, she was already dead.

Marion told Chronicle Live: “It’s just horrendous. We can’t even go to see her to say goodbye.

“She was an absolutely wonderful daughter. We couldn’t have wished for a nicer daughter. She was so caring.

“She was just the light of our lives. I can’t even begin to imagine life without her.”

According to her mum, Rebecca had dreamt of being a nurse since she was little. Picture: Facebook

Rebecca had worked as a children’s nurse at Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary before more recently taking a job with the UK’s National Health Service (NHS).

Marion said her daughter had dreamt of being a nurse since she was little, adding: “She was amazing, she had a gift.”

The devastated mum also revealed Rebecca had been “so excited” with plans to buy a house and get a dog.

She is now pleading with everyone to follow government advice and stay indoors.

Rebecca had always dreamt of becoming a nurse. Picture: Facebook

“You think you are going to be safe, but I think this virus is a lot more contagious than anyone realised. It’s indiscriminate. I don’t want any other parents to go through what we are going through at the moment,” she said.

“It is totally mind-blowing the support we have received, I knew she was brilliant but you realise how many people she touched and how much of a difference she made.

“That makes me so proud to know that is our daughter.”

Tributes have since poured in for the dedicated child cancer nurse.

“She was honest, warm and charismatic. She worked hard and made her family proud every single day,” Sarah Bredin-Kemp, one of Rebecca’s best friends, wrote on Facebook:

She knew her worth and never settled for less and wouldn’t let her friends settle either.

“She was so proud of her work and so happy to have such amazing work friends.”

Rebecca’s colleague Jamie Young also took to social media, saying he had been left heartbroken.

“Today, the NHS lost an absolutely amazing and beautiful nurse, myself and my colleagues lost the most tremendous clinician. At the age of just 29, she had her entire life ahead of her,” he said.

The tragic death of Rebecca comes as the UK death toll from coronavirus on Wednesday climbed to more than 6000 with more than 51,000 cases.

Another tragic loss reported was nurse Barbara Moore who worked at the Aintree University Hospital in Liverpool before contracting the deadly virus.

Grandmother Barbara, 54, passed away on Monday after testing positive for the virus. Picture: PA/AAP

“Barbara’s loss is an awful blow to us all, and she will be missed so much by all of her colleagues,” said Dianne Brown, chief nurse of Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

“I have offered our sincere condolences and our support to her family at this time of their sad loss.

“Barbara was a patient discharge planner, which is one of our unsung hero roles.”

She continued: “Barbara’s dedication to helping patients get safely out of hospital meant that people returned to their loved ones as soon and as simply as possible.

“She will be terribly missed.”

It’s the second blow for the Aintree University hospital workforce after 68-year-old staff nurse Liz Glanister died on Friday.

This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission