Teenager’s Legacy Helping Train Future NHS Doctors and Nurses
By Health Correspondent
The advice of a Leicester teenager who spent months in hospital is helping to train the next generation of NHS doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals.
Lexi Johnson, who was born with a rare immune deficiency, wrote what has become known as Lexi’s Letter after spending long periods in hospital undergoing treatment, including a stem cell transplant.
Wanting to improve the experience of other young patients, Lexi put together a list of simple but important reminders for healthcare staff.
They include introducing themselves, explaining why they are there, speaking directly to the child, asking what they would like to be called and how they would prefer to receive difficult news.
Lexi died in September 2025, aged 14, from complications following her transplant.
Today, her words continue to influence healthcare professionals across the UK and beyond.
Teaching staff at University of Leicester, including the Stoneygate Centre of Empathic Healthcare, now use Lexi’s Letter to teach communication skills to student doctors, nurses, midwives and other healthcare professionals.
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The letter has also been adopted by several NHS trusts, including Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, where Lexi received some of her treatment.
It has even reached healthcare teams in Tasmania and Canada and has been shared at an international conference in Spain with support from the Anthony Nolan charity.
University of Leicester nursing lecturer Stephen Caldwell said the letter was a powerful reminder of the importance of speaking directly to young patients.
He said: "At times it can be difficult working in a busy ward area that you forget to take the time to explain what you're doing. I want to instil this into our nursing students so they can take this into practice as they become the future NHS nurses."
Lexi's parents, Liz and Andy, who both studied at the University of Leicester, recently visited nursing students to share their daughter's story and explain why the letter means so much to them.
Liz said: "It was incredibly important to Lexi to have her words reach as many people in healthcare as possible. She started this because she wanted to use her voice to make a difference and, having spent so long in hospital, she knew exactly what she was talking about.
"It means everything to us to continue her work, spread Lexi's words as far as possible and leave a lasting legacy for her."
A short animation based on Lexi's Letter, voiced by her younger sister Ella, is also helping to share her message with healthcare professionals.
WATCH HERE:
First-year nursing student Chinwendu Amadi said hearing Lexi's story was something she would "never forget".
She said: "I've learned a lot from Lexi's story and the advice she put together and I'll definitely carry that on into my next placement and hopefully the rest of my career."
Her fellow student Michelle Idigbogu added:
"The patient has to be at the heart of everything and how you connect with them is really important – Lexi's Letter is an amazing reminder of how to do that."
