When Musthag Kahin received an email from her clinical lead asking for volunteers to staff a Covid-19 ward, there was no doubt what her answer would be.

This year, alongside thousands of other nursing apprentices, Kahin put herself, without hesitation, on the front line in the battle against Covid-19. It was in April that the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education announced that nursing apprenticeship courses would be paused so that the learners could be released to the NHS to lessen the strain placed on it during the pandemic.

It was a big change for Kahin and her peers, and she told Tes that, initially, she was terrified of the situation.

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“We didn’t know what was going on, we didn’t know if [Covid-19] was airborne. We were not routinely testing anyone, not even us as the staff. We weren’t wearing masks all the time, only when we were dealing with patients,” she said. “But as time has gone on, the guidance has changed and we have been provided with full PPE [personal protective equipment]. I have become more confident in dealing with coronavirus and looking after people affected by it.”

Coronavirus: Nursing apprentices on the NHS front line

Like all NHS staff working this year, Kahin has had to make extraordinary personal sacrifices. Her father is 75 and her mother 65 - Kahin told Tes that she would get home after 10pm most days, put her scrubs in two airtight bags and wash them as soon as she got home. She was unable to be physically close to her family - and hadn’t been in the same room as her father for months. Kahin’s parents were, understandably, concerned about her safety.

But she told them: “We are in unprecedented times, and looking after patients and caring for them takes priority.”

It’s a sentiment that has echoed throughout the NHS this year - and one that the country will never forget.