17-year-old reunited with family outside Eastbourne hospital following treatment for Covid-19

• Video report by ITV News Meridian's Tom Savvides

A 17-year-old has been reunited with her family after being treated for Covid-19 at a hospital in East Sussex.

Lily Kitcher contracted the virus and spent 16 days at Eastbourne District Hospital.

She spent 8 days in Critical care and 8 days in Jevington ward before she was well enough to go home.

• Watch the full video of their reunion below

Staff clapped Lily as she made her way from the Critical Care Unit to Jevington ward, and then again when she left Jevington ward to go home to be reunited with her mum.

• Watch: Lily describes how she felt safe in the care of the NHS staff at Eastbourne District Hospital

She says: "They made me feel very safe in such a scary environment. I'm so grateful to them all, doing everything they could to make me as comfortable as possible, and explain as much as they could have despite a constant confusion in my mind. I really do not doubt that without their incredible care and the amazing kindness of the staff who looked after me things might have be worse."

She has also praised how well the hospital kept her mum, Trudi, informed of her condition.

Lilly’s Mum, Trudi, said: "As a parent I can’t express how heart wrenching it is not to see your child when they are desperately ill in hospital with Covid-19. The critical care unit were great they gave us their direct number and we were reassured we could ring anytime day or night.

They recognised how difficult it was for me to not be with Lily, but we were still able to text her messages of love & support as they allowed her to have her phone. As her Dad is deaf, this was so important to him and we were grateful for this."