Nurse Jenny from New Zealand recounts treating Boris Johnson

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Nurse Jenny from New Zealand says that helping save somebody as notable as Boris Johnson in his battle with the coronavirus didn't faze her thanks to her years of dealing with stressful situations in intensive care wards.

Jenny McGee was one of two National Health Service nurses who were singled out for praise by the British prime minister after he was discharged from St. Thomas’ Hospital in London earlier this month. Johnson, 55, was the first world leader confirmed to have the virus.

In an interview with Television New Zealand that aired Thursday, McGee said the staff treated Johnson as just another patient. She has worked for 10 years in intensive care, including five as a leader.

“When I got in the car after work each night and I could hear things about Boris Johnson on the news. That was very surreal because I thought ‘Wow. I’ve been looking after him,’” she said. “But I really wasn’t fazed by looking after Boris Johnson.”

But she was taken by surprise when he mentioned her by name.

“My first reaction was that it was a joke. I thought my friends were playing a joke on me. I wasn’t expecting it,” she said.

McGee told TVNZ that in her role she is constantly monitoring her patients and giving feedback to the doctor.

Johnson had said the nurses — he also praised Luis from Portugal — made needed interventions, but McGee declined to say what they were out of respect for patient privacy.

“He was interested in where I came from and what my story was, and we spent a lot of time together and we talked away about New Zealand,” McGee said.

She said another shock came when New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern messaged her.

“So on the night that it happened I had to turn my phone off because it was so...