'It made a world of difference:' UK doctor hails ex-students

LONDON (AP) — At his darkest moment with the coronavirus, Dr. Poorna Gunasekera glimpsed three rays of light.

Following a severe deterioration in his COVID-19 symptoms, Gunasekera was rushed to Derriford Hospital in Plymouth, southwest England, in the early hours of March 30, and three former students came to treat him.

Upon entering the “red zone,” which is one step below the intensive care unit, the 57-year-old associate professor of biomedical sciences at the city's university was put into isolation.

“It was wonderful that during that time, two of my former students, who are doctors, and another, who is a nurse, actually came and they identified themselves,” he told The Associated Press following his discharge from the hospital on April 9.

His voice choked with emotion as he remembered the encounters.

“It made a world of a difference to me,” he said. “I couldn’t have seen their faces, they were all in their protective things, but they came, and they not only treated me, they did some really difficult procedures ... it gave me so much strength to know that these wonderful people were actually there.”

The feeling of respect was mutual.

Gertrude Magama, a 45-year-old nurse from Zimbabwe who has known Gunasekera since she volunteered for one of his projects, said it was an “honor” to look after him.

“I was touched when he reassured me that I was doing well when he was going through pain and discomfort,” she said. “In my eyes, he will forever be a valuable part of my future success in my nursing profession.”

Gunasekera, better known to friends and colleagues as P.G., grew up in Kandy, Sri Lanka, and led the Guard of Honour accorded to Queen Elizabeth II during her visit in October 1981.

He came to the U.K. in 1999 on a Commonwealth...