A 68-year old grandma from Bromley has become the first member of the Marie Curie nursing team to die from coronavirus. 

Barbara Sage, 68 and from Bromley, died in intensive care

A 68-year old grandma from Bromley has become the first member of the Marie Curie nursing team to die from coronavirus. 

Barbara Sage, 68 and from Bromley, died in intensive care last Sunday after battling the virus, with her devastated family refused the chance to give her one last hug goodbye.  

Barbara had dedicated more than 40 years of her life working in palliative care and spent the past 14 years at Marie Curie where she cared for cancer patients in their homes.

Her daughter Donna has paid an emotional tribute to her mum, one of the UK's nearly 15,500 coronavirus victims. 

She said: 'Mum was kind and caring and fun. She loved life, her family, her grandkids and she loved her job.  Mum started out as an ambulance driver in London when she was 18. It was that which made her want to become a nurse.'

Barbara Sage, above, has been described as an 'amazing mum' who 'dedicated' 40 years of her career to palliative care

'She was a very warm person. I suppose she had all the normal attributes of a Marie Curie nurse. 

'I guess you have to be like that in their line of work, don't you? She was dedicated to caring for people. My amazing mum, my hero.'

Barbara had joined Marie Curie in 2006 and most recently worked as a Senior Healthcare Assistant.

Donna added: 'Mum always said her job wasn't about the getting paid, it was about being there for people when they need it. It was about being caring and kind and giving people your time.

'She wouldn't just get up and leave at the end of her shift. She'd stay on to support the families or wait for the coroner if needs be.' 

Donna said her mum's line of work affected how she viewed the end of life, too.

She added: 'Because Mum had been there when people had taken their last breaths and laid out so many bodies, she wasn't afraid of death. That's something I take comfort from right now.

'She used to say to me that life was like a lightbulb, one minute it's there, and then ping, it goes, it's still hot but the light starts to fade away. That's how she described being there with someone in their last moments.'

Barbara's partner Gerald, her children Donna and Aaron, and her five grandchildren plan to celebrate her life at a memorial later in the year. 

 Matthew Reed, Chief Executive of Marie Curie said: 'Barbara's death is a devastating loss for the whole Marie Curie Team, and I know everyone who worked with Barbara over the last fourteen years can attest to her professionalism and commitment. I know she will be very greatly missed.

'I've spoken to Donna who told me how her mother had spent all her life as a palliative care nurse, holding the hands of dying people and hugging their loved ones. She told me how she and the rest of the family couldn't hold Barbara's hand as she was dying. They couldn't hug her goodbye. This pain is something that so many families are having to go through right now.

'My thoughts are with Barbara's family and friends, as well as everyone who is grieving a loved one in these incredibly difficult times.'

Barbara's manager, Adebusola, recalls how much she loved helping people.

She said: 'If ever Barbara was off and we needed cover for a shift, she'd say: 'If the patients need me, I'll be there...' That was Barbara all over: patients first.'

'She'd started her shift at 10pm the night before, and she left the family's house at 1pm the next day. She hadn't slept, she was amazing and if that's not kindness and dedication then I don't know what is.'