For almost two decades in service, an emergency department nurse, Estrella Catalan, 52, died from catching Coronavirus on Friday, February 5.

She’s been working at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH) since she arrived from the Philippines.

Before moving to the emergency department, Catalan was one of the Norwich-based Trusts in September 2002 and became a nurse on the Gunthrope and Heydon wards.

During her last BBC interview, Catalan teary-eyed from her hospital bed said, “I want to help. But I don’t know when. I don’t mind working and doing even extra shifts to help the Trust but, I’m here as a patient,” describing herself as helpless.

Dr. Samantha Batt-Rawden, an NHS Senior Intensive Care Registrar, posted the video on Twitter and wrote her farewell, “Wanting to get back on the frontline even whilst fighting for her life. Sleep well Estrella, we owe you more than we can repay,” watching the video made her to tears.

Chief Executive of NNUH NHS Foundation Trust, Sam Higginson, sends his deepest and heartfelt condolences to Catalan’s bereaved family and friends.

The executive calls Catalan a “wonderful person and caring and conscientious nurse, who loves to teach and mentor students.”

“This is a heartbreaking reminder of the situation we are facing every day to help others and we want to thank our staff for their ongoing courage and commitment during the pandemic,” he added.

Nurse and staff at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn and the James Paget Hospital in Gorleston join as one to pay tribute to Catalan’s death.

Online fundraisers GoFundMe has initiated to call for the nurse support and funeral expenses and eventually raised £24,000 or is equivalent to Php 1.5 Million, while the JustGiving Collection also raised around £15,000 or Php 995,883.18 donations.

This isn’t the first time a Pinay nurse lost her life from the service. The Philippines as one of the major suppliers of nurses around the world have lost so many lives battling the pandemic.

In the latest report from the largest National Nurses United analyzed that 74 of 245 or 30% of nurses abroad who died from getting the contagious coronavirus disease were Filipinos. Filipinos abroad have been on the front line since the health crises surged in 2019. Nurses with their contributions to health care have been acknowledged all over the world.

Photo Credit: facebook.com/strellbcatalan