THE prospect of Boris Johnson being “in full swing” back at work in Downing St next week has been raised by one of his Cabinet colleagues as the Prime Minister eases his way back into a working routine.

Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland Secretary, said Mr Johnson was “fully recovering” from the effects of coronavirus and was taking the advice of his doctors to recuperate.

He told Sky News: “I'm looking forward to seeing him back in full swing and in full grip of the reins as Prime Minister of the country; I'm sure he will be very soon. I am sure he will be very keen to get back but he is also doing the right thing."

Mr Johnson is now getting daily updates from No 10 on the coronavirus outbreak and is taking calls. Last week, he held a two-hour meeting at Chequers with Dominic Raab, who is standing in for him, and spoke to the Foreign Secretary “on a couple of occasions this week,” including yesterday.

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Last night, he had his weekly audience via telephone with the Queen, who is staying at Windsor Castle.

Asked how close the public was to seeing him back at No 10, his spokesman said: “He is speaking with No 10 staff, with the First Secretary of State, he had a call with the US President and Her Majesty the Queen. He has been sent regular updates on Government business but it is still the case he is not doing Government work.

“The First Secretary of State has said the PM is recovering well but I’m still not in a position to give you a timetable when he will be fully back at work. He will take the advice of his medical team as he has throughout.”

The spokesman confirmed that Mr Johnson would take part in the Clap for Carers this evening but added that no one should expect any pictures of him doing so.

The PM has not addressed the public since Easter Sunday 12 when he delivered a Twitter message after spending a week at St Thomas’s Hospital, including three days in the intensive care unit.

The nurses who cared for him while he fought for his life in intensive care have spoken of their time at his bedside, stressing how Mr Johnson was "a patient like any other".

Luis Pitarma from Portugal and Jenny McGee from New Zealand were singled out for praise by the PM for standing "by my bedside for 48 hours when things could have gone either way".

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Mr Pitarma, 29, who revealed he had been inspired by Florence Nightingale, said he was "nervous" after being told he would be caring for the PM but said his first conversation with his famous patient put him at ease.

In a statement, Mr Pitarma said: "I was changing into scrubs before my night shift when the matron called me over and told me the Prime Minister was about to come to ICU.

"I had been chosen to look after him because they were confident I would cope with the situation well. I felt nervous at first; he was the Prime Minister. The responsibility I was going to hold in my hands was quite overwhelming.

"I didn't really know how to address him - should I call him Boris, Mr Johnson or Prime Minister? My matron reassured me and said to be myself like I am with any other patient.

"I asked how he would like to be addressed and he said to call him Boris. That made me feel less nervous because he took away any formality. He just wanted to be looked after like anyone else.”

Mr Pitarma said watching over the PM felt quite strange because he had never looked after someone high profile before.

"But he was also a patient like any other patient, a life like any other life. It was a big responsibility and I gave it the same respect as I would with any other patient," he explained.

Mr Pitarma said he chatted with Mr Johnson about his inspiration, Florence Nightingale, who established the first professional nursing school in the world at St Thomas's Hospital in 1860.

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"I told him how I'd dreamed about working at St Thomas's since my first day of training in Portugal in 2009, when I learned about Florence Nightingale and her connection to the hospital.

"He said it was amazing that I wanted to work here for so long and was glad I was there when he needed our care. It was a pleasure to look after him.

"I could tell that he was very thankful and happy to receive messages of support from the outside world, provided by his team. They gave him the strength to fight."

Mr Johnson later released a video message praising the hospital team after being discharged, saying: "The NHS has saved my life, no question."

He name-checked the two nurses in particular for their care, saying: "The reason in the end my body did start to get enough oxygen was because for every second of the night they were watching and they were thinking and they were caring and making the interventions I needed."

Ms McGee said she was unfazed by the added pressure of taking care of the Prime Minister and added Mr Johnson "absolutely" required the urgent treatment.

She told TVNZ: "He was just another patient we were trying to do our best for. It was business as usual.

"When I got in the car after work each night and I could hear things about Boris Johnson on the news, that was very surreal.

"I thought: 'Wow, I've just been looking after him,' but I really wasn't fazed by looking after Boris Johnson. These patients who come in to us, it's a very scary thing for us, so we don't take it lightly.”

Ms McGee declared: "He absolutely needed to be there."

She said she had turned her phone off due to being bombarded with messages after Mr Johnson's public message of thanks and was shocked when Jacinda Ardern, the New Zealand premier, also messaged her.

The New Zealander explained: "On the night that it happened I had to turn my phone off because it was so overwhelming, and when I turned my phone on in the morning people were like: 'Jenny, you need to look at your Facebook,' and I was called a snob for not responding to Jacinda.

"She's a hero of mine. She's amazing, she just said how proud she was of me and the country was so proud and it was so heart-warming and that's something I will never forget."

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, the Portugese President, had also contacted Mr Pitarma directly to express his gratitude, inviting his countryman to the presidential palace on his next trip home after travel restrictions are lifted.

The nurse said: "It was quite surreal but I was very proud to get his call. He was thankful for what I'd done, for being a nurse and for representing the country.

"To be thanked by the Prime Minister and the Portuguese President within the same few hours was amazing; I couldn't really believe what was happening.

"Apparently I'm a celebrity in Portugal now. It's great to get more recognition for nurses there."

Both nurses said they were determined to help in the fight against coronavirus.

Mr Pitarma added: "It's important to me to get on with my job as normal. Other patients need the same level of care as the Prime Minister did. There are lives to save and a team to support."