The Queen says she was left ‘very tired and exhausted’ during her bout of COVID-19

His wife told the Queen that there were 500 friends and family from across the world praying for her husband, to which the monarch joked: “So you have a large family, or a large influence on people?”

The Queen listened to other stories from patients and staff, with one nurse telling her: “We held their hands, we wiped their tears and we provided comfort.”

Senior sister Mireia Lopez Rey Ferrer, who has worked in the hospital since 2008, described her team’s commitment to their patients.

“As nurses we made sure that they were not alone,” she said.

“It felt at times that we were running a marathon with no finish line.”

“I look back to the last 18 months with great pride, pride not only in the care we provided to each and every single patient, that was in one of our hospital beds, but pride in each member of staff that every day they left their families at home despite their fears and worries and they came to work.”