The Principality Stadium’s transformation into a field hospital during the coronavirus pandemic has recently been shared by Wales’ Jamie Roberts.
The 33-year-old qualified doctor posted photos from within Dragon’s Heart Hospital and from the stands of the stadium, while he volunteers for the Cardiff and Vale Health Trust during the crisis.
The pitch that has witnessed some iconic moments in Welsh rugby folklore over the past two decades, many of which Roberts has been a part of, is now covered by what is the largest hospital in Wales with 2,000 beds.
The 94-cap Wales international described this as “an amazing feat of engineering by a dedicated team in a very short space of time,” during a period where there is a high demand for hospital beds across the United Kingdom.
The centre recently returned to Cardiff from South Africa, where he was enjoying a spell with the Stormers in Super Rugby, and is currently chronicling his time with the NHS on docrobertsblog.wordpress.com. This provides an opportunity for him to share different stories of how the health system is adapting to the situation it finds itself in.
WATCH: The Stirling Mortlock and Jamie Roberts headclash in 2008
The Principality Stadium is famed for being a veritable fortress for Wales, and a notoriously intense environment for any visiting team. While it is the home of Welsh rugby, it is now part of a far greater cause, in which Roberts said it is “incredible that our national stadium is being used to provide care for COVID patients and save lives”.
Dragon’s Heart Hospital opened on Easter Sunday, and is one of a few field hospitals that have been built during the pandemic, alongside the NHS Louisa Jordan at the SEC Centre in Glasgow, and the NHS Nightingale Hospitals at the ExCel London and the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, with more being constructed.
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