THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A day before the funeral of Dr Poornima Nair, the General Practitioner who died of Covid-19 after battling for 46 days, her son Varun Nair has started a fund-raising campaign for the staff of the hospital of North Tees Hospital in Stockton -on -Tees in UK who had cared for her. Even though Varun wanted only £2000, much to his surprise, more than £12,000 (Rs 11 lakh) has been raised with more funds still pouring in.
56-year-old Poornima Nair had succumbed to Coronavirus on May 12. Her funeral is scheduled for Thursday at Stockton Crematorium in Durham County in the UK. As a tribute to his mother, Varun decided to make his mother’s final wishes as she had asked her husband, Dr Shlok Balapuri to do something for the staff of the hospital where she was being cared for. Varun, a banker in London, set up a ‘Just Giving’ page for anyone to contribute funds towards his mother’s memory.
A source close to Dr Poornima’s family told TNIE over phone that the close-knit community in Stockton poured in with more than £12,000.“The funds garnered in memory of Dr Poornima Nair will be utilised for the well-being of the Intensive Therapy Unit (ITU) staff and doctors at the North Tees Hospital in Stockton-on -Tees. It shows how much Dr Poornima was loved in the community,” said a family source.
Dr Poornima had her roots to Cherukunnam in Kannur and is the daughter of the late PK Nair and Sarala Nair.