Kate Middleton and Prince William attend party for NHS 72nd anniversary

Prince William and Kate Middleton attended a party at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn on Sunday, joining health care workers on the 72nd anniversary of the foundation of the NHS.

 Paying  tribute for their pandemic response, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and enjoyed afternoon tea with doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers.

The kind-hearted royals spoke to staff and volunteers during their visit, including medical staff, catering and operational staff, some of whom have returned to work from retirement specifically to support the COVID-19 effort.

The Queen Elizabeth Hospital has so far treated 450 patients with COVID-19 during the pandemic and 291 of those patients have been discharged. The hospital celebrates its 40th anniversary on 22 July 2020.  

Among the people the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge met were Suzie Vaughan, one of the Hospital’s Operating Department Practitioners, who explained: "I worked on the COVID Intensive Treatment Unit and COVID Emergency Department during the pandemic." He added, "Duke and Duchess’s visit is a recognition of the hard work and compassion that everybody has put in to keep our patients safe."

William and Kate chatted with the girls for a few minutes and Kate thanked Vaughan for her work, saying, “You did a really good job. It’s amazing how everybody pulled together.”

The royals posted about their visit on their social media accounts, writing, "Whether you are existing staff, former staff members who came out of retirement, volunteers or key workers – we thank you for the resilience, perseverance and hope you’ve shown our nation."