Soldier and surgeon: Twin brothers on the frontline
Twin brothers, soldier and surgeon, come together on the frontline to help save lives at the new NHS Nightingale London hospital
The Suffolk born brothers, both 42, made radically different career choices as children. For the first time, their individual skills have been unified in one single mission.
British Army officer Lieutenant Colonel Phill Moxey led a team which helped turn the Excel Centre into a 4,000-bed hospital.
His brother Paul is a highly respected Vascular Surgeon at St George’s Hospital, London. He is currently on call to aid the new hospital’s dedicated medical team which received its first patients yesterday — he was full of praise for the joint NHS and Army effort that made NHS Nightingale a reality.
The pair say they both fell in love with their careers as children. While Phill was set on the Army his brother Paul committed to becoming a surgeon after witnessing Sir Terence English — who led the team that performed Britain’s first successful heart transplant — perform open-heart surgery.
Here is what Lt Col Phill Moxey had to say👇
‘Our soldiers have thrown themselves into this effort with passion and energy to make sure our teammates across government and, most importantly, the NHS get what they need.
‘We have had their backs from the start and we will stay in it with them together until the end.
‘It’s not lost on either of us the apparent utter contrast in our chosen professions — soldier vs surgeon.
‘But both roles have taken many years of experience to get to and both have required a degree of sacrifice, patience and tolerance on the home front.
‘Neither of us could have got to where we are without the support of our families. Both roles require calmness under pressure, leadership and constant education.
‘How we find perspective, maintain self-discipline, willingly take sensible risks day in and day out but ultimately never give up and keep the needs of our nation at the forefront, are the similarities.’
Here is what Vascular Surgeon Paul Moxey had to say👇
‘I think the Nightingale is a triumph for NHS England and the Army team that have put it together so quickly.
‘It shows what we can do as a country when we put our minds to it and has taught the NHS a lot about breaking out of the silos we all work in and collaborating with other teams to achieve a common goal. Long may it continue after COVID is defeated.
‘Our junior doctors have been taken to support Intensive Care, so we have had to relearn the administrative tasks that dog a junior doctor’s life.
‘Having said that, there is a great atmosphere of camaraderie and teamwork at St George’s and the vascular surgeons are very happy to possess the skills to help support our ICU colleagues with vascular access procedures and do our part in this crisis.’
The brothers are in total agreement that the best way to meet the needs of the nation right now is for as many of us as possible to stay at home, to protect the NHS in order to save lives.
