Staff and students from our School of Health Sciences have paid tribute to twin sisters, Emma and Katy Davis, who recently died after contracting the coronavirus just days apart.
Emma and Katy both studied as part of our Nursing programme with Emma going on to work in the colorectal surgery unit at University Hospital Southampton. Katy worked at Southampton Children’s Hospital.
As a mark of respect, the University lowered the flag in Jubilee Square on the Highfield Campus to half-mast on 12 May – international Nurses’ Day – to honour Emma, Katy and all other nurses who have lost their lives in aid of caring for coronavirus patients in the UK and around the world.
Sad news of the twins’ untimely death prompted staff to reflect on their time as students.
Emma is described as an ‘excellent nurse with the highest standards; whose strong work ethic and leadership skills as well as her empathy for her patients, ensured that she was delivering the best possible care’. Katy’s mentors found that she was ‘a delight to work with ‘highlighting being both ‘innovative and highly conscientious, with a gentle, sensitive, thoughtful and caring approach to nursing’.
“Our sympathies go out to the Davis family who we hope will find comfort in knowing just how much love and respect Emma and Katy had amongst those who shared their passion for nursing,” said Dr Julie Cullen, Head of Nursing, Midwifery and Health . “Just thinking about their time as students in Southampton and the approach they both took to their own careers in nursing leaves us feeling devastated at their early passing.”
