Staff from the Royal Free London (RFL) have been immortalised in a series of portraits by artists keen to show their appreciation for healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vicky Pang, head of infection prevention and control nursing, was chosen to sit for acclaimed artist, Janey Sharratt, after receiving the most nominations from colleagues.

Presenting her portrait to her, Caroline Clarke, RFL group chief executive, said: “Vicky demonstrates our values every day. She’s been amazing during the Covid crisis, continues to be so, and it’s great that so many of her colleagues agree. It’s a wonderful picture and I’m delighted to be giving it to you in recognition of all your hard work getting staff mobilised and keeping them and our patients safe. Thank you.”

Julie Hamilton, RFL group chief nurse, said: “Vicky does a brilliant job and I definitely think the portrait captures her calmness and capability.”

Vicky said: “This is all a bit overwhelming but I’m very pleased. Janey came to the hospital and took lots of pictures of me and talked to me about what I did but this is the first time I’ve seen the result. I do like it but I haven’t decided yet where I’m going to put it!”

Vicky is not the only member of staff to have had their portrait painted. Other members of staff took part in the ‘Portraits for NHS Heroes’ project. NHS staff were connected with over 1,000 artists across the country on social media who painted their portraits for free in thanks for their work.

Nina Davies, a senior research nurse in cardiology at the Royal Free Hospital (RFH), was redeployed to support in ITU for three months. Her portrait was painted by Charlotte Johnstone.

Nina's photo

Nina's portrait

Dorcas Boamah, a nutrition clinical nurse specialist at RFH who was redeployed to the Nightingale Hospital, was painted by Sarah Harvey.

One of the photos used by Sarah to paint Dorcas

Dorcas painted by Sarah Harvey

Both Nina and Dorcas’s portraits recently appeared on the famous lit up billboard in Piccadilly Circus as part of the #lightitblue campaign and also on the front cover of the August edition of Artist Talk Magazine.

Dorcas and Nina lit up in Piccadilly Circus