London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Sep 22, 2026

NHS staff called 'murderers' describe 'mentally exhausting' online abuse

NHS staff called 'murderers' describe 'mentally exhausting' online abuse

Doctors said they have been called ‘devil’, ‘Satan’, ‘a shill of the Government’ and a ‘prostitute for Big Pharma’.

Medical professionals revealed the online attacks they have suffered through while working on the frontlines of a pandemic that had 31,670 coronavirus patients in hospital as of February 2.

Doctors told Channel 4 News that people had called them names including a ‘devil’, ‘Satan’, ‘a shill of the Government’ and a ‘prostitute for Big Pharma’.

Intensive care consultant Dr Matt Morgan, who has been called a ‘piece of sh*t’, said his colleagues ‘across intensive care in South Wales, have been sent death threats of physical violence.’

Dr Ami Jones, also an intensive care consultant, said her nurses have been ‘absolutely devastated’ by the online abuse.

She told the presenter that nurses tell her: ‘“People think we’re lying. People think I’m coming to work and lying about what I do”.

‘They couldn’t believe that they’re breaking their back and, you know, killing themselves to try and keep these patients going and that people are turning around and saying that we’re lying and none of that’s happening and that Covid doesn’t exist.’


Dr Clare Davies said NHS staff ‘don’t want to be called “heroes” they just do not want to be called “murderers or prostitutes”.’

She said: ‘Instead now of being heroes and being clapped we are now being told that we are killers, we are liars, we are frauds.

‘We just want to be treated with civility and treated as people that are doing our job, daily, under pressure.’

Emergency medicine consultant, Dr Farbod Babolhaveji, said that although medical staff could just stay away from social media he thinks they have a ‘responsibility as health care workers’ to inform the public.

‘We don’t get paid for doing this. It’s not part of our job. We haven’t had training in doing it. We do it because we think it’s important. We do it because we think it will help patients and families,’ said Dr Matt Morgan.

Dr Farbod Babolhaveji said the abuse is ‘exhausting’

Dr Matt Morgan said himself and colleagues receive death threats

Dr Ami Jones said her nurses hate that people think they are lying


The coronavirus death toll for health care workers has surpassed 600, according to a recent report by the workers’ safety organisation Peoplesafe.

Peoplesafe thinks the ‘higher risk of infection’ that healthcare workers take takes a mental health toll including ‘stress, anxiety, PTSD, depression and insomnia’.

Whilst the service says that ‘abuse is nothing new for NHS staff, the coronavirus pandemic has led to a rise in violence towards healthcare staff’.

Many anti-lockdown protesters and coronavirus skeptics have demonstrated outside hospitals over the last few months.

Deomstrators refused to wear masks and shouted ‘Covid is a hoax’ as stressed medical staff begin and finish their shifts.

One doctor posted about finishing an A&E shift at London’s St Thomas’ Hospital and coming out to one such protest.

Anti-vaccine protestors often demonstrate outside hospitals calling coronavirus a ‘hoax’



Dr Matthew Lee tweeted: ‘Worked the late A&E shift on New Year’s Eve and came out to this.

‘Hundreds of maskless, drunk people in huge groups shouting “Covid is a hoax”, literally outside the building where hundreds are sick and dying.

‘Why do people still not realise the seriousness of this pandemic?’

According to the latest Government figures, 242.8 people per 100,000 have tested positive in the seven-day period ending on January 30.

In the week ending on January 22, 9,052 people died with coronavirus mentioned on their death certificates.

The UK’s total death toll, since the pandemic started, recently surpassed 100,000 as it is now 112, 660 if one measures it by the virus mentioned on a death certificate and 110,250 if one measures it by a death within 28 days of a positive test.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Andy Burnham Reaffirms UK Net-Zero Target With £30 Million Community Energy Fund
Scottish Labour Leader Backs Rosebank and Jackdaw North Sea Projects
UK Consumer Confidence Falls to Three-Year Low
UK Diesel Prices Approach £2 a Litre as Global Supply Shortages Intensify
Chiltern Railways Returns to Public Ownership as UK Rail Nationalisation Advances
British Museum Faces Questions Over Peter Thiel’s Private Bayeux Tapestry Viewing
Earl Spencer Memoir Excerpts Renew Public Debate Over Diana’s Death
Liberal Democrats Gather in Brighton for Autumn Conference
Mothercare Shares Plunge as Middle East Store Closures Threaten Long-Term Solvency
Kent Police Treat Folkestone Hotel Fire as Suspicious
Caribbean Governments Advance Reparations Campaign Seeking Engagement With Britain
Scottish Labour Leader Backs Rosebank and Jackdaw North Sea Projects
FCA Urges Young Adults to Trace £1.5 Billion in Unclaimed Child Trust Funds
UK Competition Regulator Opens Inquiry Into McCormick-Unilever Foods Deal
Public Inquiry Into Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys Mental Health Failings Set to Begin
Nigel Farage Looks to US Immigration Enforcement Model for UK Border Policy
Chiltern Railways Moves Into Public Ownership
Security Review Raises Concerns Over Sensitive UK Police Data Stored on Microsoft Cloud
Burnham Government Warns of Difficult Autumn Budget as Fiscal Headroom Narrows
Bank of England Holds Rates at 3.75% as Inflation Rises to 3.1%
Ed Sheeran Tour Faces Backlash After Macklemore Is Removed Over Pro-Palestinian Remarks
Vandalism of Traffic Cameras Intensifies Across Parts of England
Nearly 300 Evacuated as Fire Hits Grand Burstin Hotel in Folkestone
King Charles Warns AI Executives About Risks From Uncontrolled Technology
Church of England Apologises for Role in Historical Forced Adoption Practices
UK Debate Over Online Speech Intensifies After Arrest Figures Draw Scrutiny
Oxfordshire Village Holds Symbolic Independence Vote Over Asylum Accommodation Plan
Nigel Farage and Richard Tice Sue National Crime Agency Over Alleged Banking Data Leaks
Apple Introduces Stricter Age Checks for UK Accounts
BBC Cash Reserves Fall 66% to £125 Million as Broadcaster Restructures
McLaren Announces £500 Million UK Investment and Plans 1,000 Jobs
Green Party Wins Historic Gorton and Denton By-Election as Labour Falls to Third
Burnham Government Prepares October Budget Under Growing Fiscal Pressure
UK Energy Suppliers Pull Fixed-Price Deals as Wholesale Markets Turn More Volatile
Bank of England Holds Rates at 3.75% as Middle East Energy Shock Raises Inflation Risks
Addison Lee Founder Loses £20 Million UK Tax Tribunal Case
BrewDog Creditors Face Losses on About £190 Million of Debt
Harrods Seeks to Recover Abuse Compensation Costs From Mohamed Al Fayed’s Estate
Ed Davey Targets Reform UK as Liberal Democrat Conference Opens
Great Britain Retail Sales Rise 0.5% in August
NHS England Approves Life-Extending Treatment for Incurable Breast Cancer
Proposals to Limit NHS ADHD Diagnoses Draw Criticism From Patient Groups
Resolution Foundation Warns of Housing Cost Crunch for Low-Income UK Families
BBC Cash Reserves Fall to Decade Low as Annual Deficit Reaches £121 Million
Millisecond Software Error Triggered Major UK Air Traffic Control Disruption
Twenty Women Underwent Unnecessary Mastectomies During NHS Cancer Care
Sensitive UK Police Data Found Vulnerable to Access by Foreign Actors
British Steel Faces Renewed Pressure for a Long-Term Financial Plan
MPs Urge Government to End Thames Water Restructuring Talks With U.S. Hedge Funds
Andy Burnham Warns of Difficult UK Budget Choices as Inflation Returns to 3.1%
×