They’re the lifeblood of any hospital, transporting sick people and crucial supplies through corridors and, in doing so, constantly traversing the fragile line between life and death, yet hospital porters are often overlooked.
Kabiru Ogundipe, from Peckham, was crowned the UK’s best hospital porter at the annual MyPorter awards on February 21.
The 51-year-old, who hasn’t had a sick day in twelve years, says it’s important that he and his colleagues are finally being recognised for their hard work.
Kabiru, who moved to Peckham from Nigeria in 2002, said: “We are forgotten… it’s great they’ve started to remember not only the doctors or the anaesthetists or the nurses.
“The porters are there, the cleaners are there, the security are there. All of us need to be carried on board.”
Around 300 porters were nominated for the prize so Kabiru was ecstatic to be pronounced the winner, especially given his wife had joked she’d only attend the ceremony if he won.
“When they announced the winner is Kabiru Ogundipe, the emotion, the tears, just ran down my face,” he said.
“When I collected the award I was still crying. It was amazing. I thank god.”
Two hours later, he was back at work, ferrying his patients to their scans, operations and appointments – wherever they needed to be.
In his eleven years as a porter at Northwick Park Hospital, Kabiru has encountered the sorts of incidents that would be seared into most people’s memories. But for him, they’re routine.
The father of three said: “That’s our job. When I see a patient the first thing that comes to mind is empathy. I only have empathy for the patients.
“How would you feel if you were a patient? The way I [would] want them to treat me is the way I want to treat them.”
While Kabiru might regard himself as unspectacular, his speedy response, and unwavering calm, in several incidents, saw him nominated for the Porter of the Year award.
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One such incident saw a patient jump from a nine-storey building in a suicide attempt and land on the roof of another building below.
For over three hours, Kabiru worked alongside the fire brigade who arrived to climb onto the roof, to get medical supplies to the victim who survived.
“It was very, very, very critical. All of us stayed focused and did what was necessary to do,” Kabiru said.
Another incident saw a man suffer a major haemorrhage, losing blood at an alarming rate. Over several hours, Kabiru transported an astonishing twenty units of blood to the patient.
The Medirest employee said: “You have to be on your toes. Never panic. You have to be stable and follow the instructions of the anaesthetist and the doctor.”
Patients often thank Kabiru with gifts and cards but, even when encountering those who behave aggressively, he remains calm.
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He says there are often “mental health patients…spitting on you, punching you, using all sorts of ‘f words’ on you”.
“You have to calm down and do your job,” he said. “Spitting on me will not stop me taking that patient to their x-ray”.
Inevitably, some of the patients Kabiru forms bonds with pass away but he says his hospital is “really supportive”.
Despite such testing scenarios and the early starts, Kabiru says: “I love what I am doing.”
He joined the team after working in construction and finding work was drying up after the London 2012 Olympics.
Kabiru said: “I really enjoy chatting with patients, putting them at ease and reassuring them they are in the best place.
“I know so many people here now that it’s almost like my second family. I commute from south London and have no intention of moving to a hospital closer to home. I’d miss everyone.”