NHS at 70: Emilia Clarke thanks nurses for looking after her father in moving speech

‘I vow to champion nurses and support workers and to help you gain the recognition and money you deserve’

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Emilia Clarke has described nursing as an important profession that “we must value” while giving her utmost thanks to the nurses who took care of her father during the later stages of his life.

The actor, best known for starring as Daenerys Targaryen in Game of Thrones, was speaking at the RCNi Nurse Awards ceremony in London last night as an ambassador for the Royal College of Nursing.

She explained that witnessing the care that her father received from nurses prior to his death two years ago opened her eyes to the dexterity and competence required for the job.

“I was given the opportunity to be involved in the intricacies that made up a day of trying to save his life, and it showed me with such clarity not only the awe-inspiring skill that the nurses clearly had, but the emotional intelligence that came along with it,” she said, according to the Nursing Standard.

“I know my dad received the best care and medical support from our nurses, who dealt with every second of those dark days.”

Clarke believes it’s important to provide nurses with the same level of support that they give to their patients, describing their own treatment as “heartbreaking”.

“To force the people who save our lives to live on food stamps has to stop,” she stated.

“Now more than ever we must value nursing. Nursing is about more than just medicine; it’s about engaging with another person on a human level - like hugging a daughter who knows that she is about to lose her dad.”

On Saturday 30 June, thousands marched in London against the government in protest of the “deliberate” underfunding of the NHS, which celebrates its 70th birthday today.

A recent study of 1,905 nurses discovered that many frequently go hungry and thirsty during work as they have no time to take a break.

Clarke wants to use her platform to raise awareness for the hard work undertaken by nurses and to back a new generation of specialist nurses who would “deliver innovative practice, improve survival rates and reduce hospital stays, and help those with long-term conditions to live their lives to the full.”

“I vow to champion nurses and support workers and to help you gain the recognition and money you deserve,” she said.

“The time has come for us to reciprocate this selfless care that nurses give on a daily basis.”

During the night, Clarke presented the prizes for the RCN Nurse of the Year award and the RCNi Andrew Parker Student Nurse award.