London: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Sunday thanked the state-funded NHS medics and staff for their hard work through the coronavirus pandemic as he was discharged from hospital, saying he owed them his life after testing positive for the virus two weeks ago.
Downing Street said that Johnson left St. Thomas' Hospital in London and will head to his prime ministerial residence of Chequers in Buckinghamshire, south east England. On the advice of his medical team, he will not be returning to work immediately.
"The PM has been discharged from hospital to continue his recovery, at Chequers," a Downing Street spokesperson said. "He wishes to thank everybody at St Thomas' for the brilliant care he has received.
All of his thoughts are with those affected by this illness," the spokesperson said. Earlier, in his first public statement since being moved out of the intensive care unit of the hospital, the 55-yearold UK prime minister said: "I can't thank them enough, I owe them my life."
Johnson, who completed a week in hospital on Sunday after being shifted there with persistent COVID-19 symptoms, had been making "very good progress" while on the hospital ward.
He was able to take short walks as his doctors monitored his recovery after being moved out of intensive care and was watching films and doing puzzles in his hospital bed.
