Estrella Catalan: Hospital nurse dies with Covid-19

A "wonderful, caring" nurse has died with Covid-19 in the hospital she had worked at for nearly two decades.

Estrella Catalan, 52, died on Friday at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (NNUH), where she was an emergency department staff nurse.

She had been receiving treatment in the hospital's critical care complex.

Chief executive of NNUH NHS Foundation Trust, Sam Higginson, said Ms Catalan, who had worked at the hospital since 2002, "will be terribly missed".

Ms Catalan had previously been interviewed by the BBC from her intensive care bed while she was unwell with Covid-19.

Mr Higginson said: "Our deepest and heartfelt condolences are with Estrella's loved ones and friends at this very difficult time and with all those who worked alongside Estrella and knew her."

He called Ms Catalan a "wonderful person and a caring and conscientious nurse, who loved to teach and mentor students" and said they would "formulate a fitting memorial to Estrella".

"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," added Mr Higginson.

According to a GoFundMe page which has raised more than £4,700, Ms Catalan is survived by her husband Melvin and their sons John and Josh, and added that her eldest son Vince died two years ago.

"She puts the needs of others first before her own," the page said.

"Her selflessness and dedication carried on even when she was on her hospital bed, she still thought and talked about when she could go back to work to help patients and colleagues throughout this pandemic.

"Estrella promised her family, 'I will be back' when she was taken to the hospital few weeks ago... sadly, a promise that she could no longer physically keep."

Find BBC News: East of England on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you have a story suggestion email [email protected]