Two nurses who died from Covid-19 will be honoured by a university and hospital trust by awarding two new nursing bursaries.

Mum-of-three Aimee O'Rourke, 39, tragically died in April at the QEQM Hospital in Margate , leaving behind three daughters, Megan, Mollie and Maddie.

Adekunle Enitan, 55, an intensive care nurse and father of two, died in intensive care at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford in the same month.

Canterbury Christ Church University and East Kent Hospitals Trust will honour the memory of them both by awarding two new nursing bursaries.

The awards, funded by the Trust, will give extra support to students through their nursing programme studies at the university.

The Aimee O‘Rourke Bursary, awarded to Caroline Rogers, recognises the achievement and dedication towards nursing shown by Aimee during her career.

She studied as a mature student at Christ Church and later nursed at QEQM - but she was tragically one of the first frontline workers to die with Covid-19.

The second bursary, awarded to Leonora Cinco, is in recognition of the success and dedication shown by Adekunle Enitan to his work as a nurse in intensive care at William Harvey Hospital.

Adekunle died after contracting Covid-19 at the end of April and the bursary will be for students from a BAME background.

Professor Debra Towse, dean of medicine, health and social care, said: "Aimee, one of our recent nursing graduates, loved her profession and was dedicated to her patients.

"We are thankful to have known her as a student and we are immensely proud to announce the bursary awards in honour of Aimee and Adekunle.

"Adekunle was known for his commitment to the team and to his patients, and was an experienced and respected nurse."

She continued: "Our nurses are critical to the nation’s health and wellbeing and we will support them through their training and journey into what, for many, will be a lifelong passion and career.

"The demands of contemporary healthcare in this country have changed and will continue to do so. This directly influences our programmes at the University, to help us remain at the cutting edge of nursing education."

The total award for each bursary is £2,500 per year for a maximum period of three years of study and applicants needed to meet the full criteria to apply.

Chief executive of East Kent Hospitals Susan Acott said the Trust was "delighted" to fund the bursary in memory of both nurses.

"Aimee and Adekunle were much-loved members of our Trust family and I know they are still greatly missed by their many friends and colleagues at our hospitals," she said.

“These bursaries are another way for us to honour their memory and to inspire the nurses of the future to follow in their footsteps."

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