‘Here Comes the Sun’ Plays in Tribute to COVID-19 Patients

Leslie Waitson, left, and Carly Blair came up with the idea to play Here Comes the Sun when a patient is discharged.

An initiative by two St. Mary’s General Hospital nurses to lift spirits during the COVID-19 pandemic has caught on at other hospitals in Waterloo Region.

Leslie Waitson and Carly Blair had the idea to play the Beatles classic Here Comes the Sun over the PA system every time a COVID-19 patient was discharged from hospital.

“I thought, ‘this is such a joyful, hopeful song,’” Waitson, a Registered Practical Nurse and Staff Trainer, told CTV Kitchener in an interview.

Little darling, it’s been a long cold lonely winter.
Little darling, it seems like years since it’s been here.
Here comes the sun, do do do do

A QUIET IDEA THAT SPREAD

St. Mary’s quietly began playing Here Comes the Sun, on Christmas Eve 2020. The song is also bittersweet, recognizing that not all COVID patients will go home.

More recently, Cambridge Memorial and Grand River Hospital decided to feature the song and when it plays at Grand River’s onsite COVID-19 vaccine clinic, people stop what they’re doing and sing along.

“I think it’s great to see the community join in the celebration,” said Registered Nurse and Clinical Educator Carly Blair. “There is light at the end of the tunnel and every time we hear the song, it reminds us of that.”

Little darling, the smiles returning to their faces.
Little darling, it seems like years since it’s been here.
Here Comes the Sun, and I say,
It’s alright.

Beatles song celebrates COVID-19 recovery – CTV Kitchener

At St. Mary’s, Here Comes the Sun has been a motivator for a weary workforce that has battled the pandemic for a year. “We’re tired,” said Waitson. “We have to continue to celebrate the wins.”

“It’s such a uniting thing for our team,” added St. Mary’s President Lee Fairclough. “When it plays, wherever you are, you just stop, because you know something has happened and it’s very special.”