This is the touching moment a police chief who almost died from coronavirus wept with joy as he thanked heroic doctors and nurses for saving his life.
Chief Superintendent Phil Dolby, of West Midlands Police, was left fighting for his life after being struck down with the killer bug.
He spent 13 days in intensive care at Birmingham’s Heartlands Hospital but was taken off a ventilator last week after his condition improved.
Heartwarming footage showed the 45-year-old break down in tears as he was wheeled out of hospital on Tuesday (21/4)
After he rung the victory bell in the ward as a signal of beating the killed virus, staff cheered and clapped.
A visibly emotional Phil said: “I just want to say, you’ve not just cared for me. The passion and the work you are doing is brilliant.
“You’ve saved my life and I’m going back to my family. That’s a gift I’ll never stop thanking you for.”
Phil had been updating his Twitter followers about his condition after falling ill with the virus but went silent on March 29 after he was moved to intensive care.
His final tweet told how he was left feeling frightened due to episodes of “breathlessness and dizziness” on his daughter’s 15th birthday.
Friends and colleagues rallied around the police officer to show their support and family members urged people to say prayers as his condition worsened.
His wife-of-25-years Mary, who was forced to visit her husband by waving through the hospital window while he battled the disease, said: “He’s alive and back with us.
“There were times we feared there would be no homecoming for Phil. The doctors and nurses have saved his life and we’ll be forever grateful.
“Phil would certainly not fall into what’s deemed the ‘vulnerable’ category: he’s only 45 and a fit man.
“Our experience shows people of all ages can be susceptible to coronavirus so please adhere to the warnings.
“We can’t express enough our gratitude for the doctors and nurses at Worcester Royal.
“Without their care and medical expertise we wouldn’t be welcoming Phil back home. I can’t put into words how thankful we are.”
“I wasn’t able to speak to or see Phil after he was taken by paramedics.
“That’s the worst thing. Normally if a loved one is ill you can be with them, hold their hand and comfort them – but coronavirus deprives you of that.
“That’s the hardest thing for family and friends of people suffering this dreadful virus, you can’t be there for them and you have no choice but to put all your faith in the NHS
staff and pray. That’s what we did.
“It was hard to sleep at night and the days drag on so long. There is nothing to occupy your mind, no friends to speak to face-to-face or hug.
“The hospital staff are so busy they can’t give regular updates on patients’ conditions – all their attention, rightly so, is going into treating people and trying to help them
recover.
“When we did speak to staff they were always very calm, kind, compassionate and a reassuring voice.
“They did manage to set up a camera when he was in ICU so we could see Phil and his surroundings.
“It helped being able to visualise where he was. It was a video chat facility but it was a one-way conversation as by that stage he was sedated.
“But it helped just being able to speak to him and see him; it gave us some peace of mind.”
On April 8, the day before Mary’s birthday, Phil came off a ventilator but still needed additional oxygen supplies to support his breathing.
She added: “He missed my birthday in intensive care but gave me the best present I could have wished for when he started breathing for himself.
“It’s amazing he’s back home with us but he still has a long road to recovery. He just needs to rest and build up is strength which was drained from weeks in bed.
“My job will be to make sure he doesn’t try to get ahead of himself and do things too quickly.”
Dad-of-three Phil – who heads up our Criminal Justice Department – has worked with West Midlands Police for 26 years.