The family of a former hospital worker who "had the odds stacked against him" after contracting coronavirus has said he is on the mend.

Paddy McDermott used to work as a porter at Darent Valley Hospital in Dartford and Joyce Green Hospital, in the same town, which was closed in 2000, before retiring four years ago.

The 74-year-old was admitted to the Palm Ward at DVH at the end of March and placed on a CPAP machine to help his breathing.

A couple of days after arriving he was confirmed as having Covid-19.

His family explained how due to his pre-existing medical issues they became extremely worried, but the former porter began to slowly progress and has now been taken off the CPAP and moved to Chestnut Ward to recover.

A statement from Paddy's family said: “We want to thank everyone who has been involved in Paddy’s care. We were extremely worried as the odds were stacked against him and we all prepared ourselves for very bad news.

"To us his recovery is a true miracle of science but this could not have been achieved without the care and compassion shown by all the staff involved in his care. From the small but important things such as getting his daily newspaper delivered, our family Face-time calls, providing a voucher so he can use the bedside phone and the brilliant idea of the hand delivered messages.

"There are so many things that we could mention the list is endless. From Paddy’s, family and friends there are no words which can express enough how truly grateful we are for looking after him, you are all truly amazing. We look forward to him coming home soon.”

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