St George’s Hospital staff pay tribute to nurse, 34, who died this week

By Sian Bayley, Local Democracy Reporter

Staff at St George’s Hospital in Tooting have paid tribute to a “popular” and “dedicated” nurse who has passed away.

Kenneth Lambatan, 34, was a cardiac research nurse at the hospital – and may have been killed by complications arising from coronavirus although this has yet to be confirmed.

He is thought to have passed away yesterday, according to social media reports.

Mr Lambatan was based in the cardiology department at St George’s Hospital, but also worked in the Clinical Research Facility.

The hospital issued a statement on behalf of Jacqueline Totterdell, chief executive of St George’s Hospital, and Professor Jenny Higham, principal at St George’s, University of London.

It read: “Everyone at St George’s is deeply saddened by the death of Ken, one of our cardiac research nurses.

“Ken was very popular with staff, and described as a ‘true gem’ by those that knew him well. He was dedicated to his role as a research nurse here at St George’s, and was as popular with his patients as he was with colleagues.

“Our thoughts go out to his family, friends and colleagues at this time.”

As of Monday, 243 patients had died at St George’s having tested positive for coronavirus.

A statement on the trust’s website read: “Our thoughts are with the families of the patients affected – and, in all cases, we would ask that their privacy is respected at this time.”