Sir Rod Stewart surprised patients waiting for their MRI scans at a British hospital by taking care of the bill. The money not only helped pay for their visit, it also allowed the hospital to provide faster service.
The Guardian reports Stewart donated funds that covered a full day of scans at Princess Alexandra hospital in Essex, England.
As previously reported, the singer was inspired to cover patients’ scans last month. He told Sky News it was ridiculous people had to wait in long lines for the procedure.
“I had just come from my scan in a private clinic near Harley Street,” he said. “I walked in and said, ‘I’m terribly sorry, I’m half an hour late.’ They said, ‘Don’t worry, there’s hardly anybody in here today."”
“There were eight people with hardly anything to do. Then I thought this is a terrible injustice, so here we are,” he added.
A hospital representative said the singer’s donation reduced the waiting list by about 10 percent.
When making good on his word, Stewart joked he wanted to “prove I’m not all mouth and trousers.”
Stewart now wants to help pay for MRI scans at other hospitals and hopes to inspire more people with the means to help others. “If this is a big success, which I think it will be, I’d like to do it in Belfast, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester, and just keep it going and hope some other people follow me,” he said.
The singer also rallied for nurses to be paid more.
“There must be enough money in the coffers to pay up for these nurses – only two years ago we were clapping and now … Bless them, they work so hard, salt of the earth,” Stewart said.
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