A senior doctor at Royal Berkshire Hospital has been a victim of theft after her bike was stolen from a locked storage area outside of the hospital.
Health officials have urged staff and people living close to Reading’s Royal Berkshire Hospital to keep a close eye on their cars and cycles after Consultant Geriatrician Dr Hannah Johnson’s bike was stolen yesterday.
Having finished a long and gruelling shift at RBH, Dr Johnson returned to find her bicycle had been taken from the hospital’s secure storage area where it had been locked for safe keeping.
The mother of two uses the bike for her daily eight mile commute from Wokingham to the hospital where she treats patients on the elderly care wards. And during the coronavirus pandemic she has been supporting staff caring for patients with the virus.
Speaking about the theft, Dr Johnson, said: “This is my main form of transport – I know it’s quite a long bike ride from Wokingham, but the cycle commute helps me clear my head after difficult days at work.
“Yesterday when I finished work it was pouring down so I knew I’d have a bit of a tricky ride home but then to find my bike had been stolen was just heart-breaking.
“I just want to alert other staff at the hospital, as well as people living nearby, to be aware that they need to be extra vigilant with valuables like this,” she added.
Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust Chief Executive Steve McManus said: “All our staff are working incredibly hard during the coronavirus outbreak – it is putting huge pressure on them both physically and emotionally.
“They’re all very tired and often quite stressed after a day on the wards dealing with some extremely poorly people, so for Hannah to finish her shift and find someone had stolen her bike is really disappointing.”
