Carluke man suffering from coronavirus met newborn great-granddaughter via Zoom call

Staff at University Hospital Wishaw arranged the special moment.

A Carluke man suffering from Covid-19 was able to meet his newborn great-granddaughter after hospital staff arranged a video call for him.

Alex Weir, 83, had been fighting the disease for almost a month at University Hospital Wishaw, but frontline workers were able to bring him some joy when they arranged for him to take part in a video chat and meet his family’s new arrival.

His granddaughter, Hannah, had a baby girl called Cora on April 23, while he was in hospital.

And Alex’s daughter Fiona Bryan, who works as a moving and handling advisor for NHS Lanarkshire, has expressed how grateful she is for the Zoom call and the care that staff gave her dad.

She said: “I called the ward and asked if they could tell dad. Since my dad doesn’t have a smartphone, I printed a picture of Cora and asked the staff to pass it onto him.

“However, the nurse I spoke to offered to set up a video call for us on the ward iPad.

“Dad was able to have a video chat with myself and his two granddaughters.

“Most importantly, he was able to meet baby Cora for the first time.”

Alex, who lives in Braidwood, Carluke, with his wife Jean, has since been discharged after recovering from coronavirus.

Daughter Fiona added: “Dad was so happy to see his family and to meet the brand new addition.

“It was brilliant to finally be able to see his face and see how he was recovering.”

Fiona continued: “Dad had pneumonia in January and had been unwell following this with recurrent chest issues. He had been poorly since the pneumonia and was not picking up.

“Due to social distancing rules during Covid-19, we had only been able to see dad from the door or through the window.

“On Saturday, April 18, we got a call from his carers to say he was not good.

“We went to visit him and he looked terrible. He had a fever and was pale and was confused. I got a real fright.

“Dad was admitted to University Hospital Wishaw, with what we thought was a chest infection. However, he tested positive for Covid-19 the next day.

“He says he knew he was unwell and might not make it, but wasn’t ready to go.

“He wanted home and to see his new great grandchild who was due soon.”

Fiona now says: “Dad is doing really well. He is looking forward to a time when he can hold his new great grandchild.

“I can’t thank the staff in ward eight enough. They were fantastic and so good with us all.”