Kyla Tyson is a fictional character from the BBC medical drama Holby City, portrayed by actress Rakie Ayola. She appeared from 7 February 2006 to 9 December 2008, from the series eight episode "I'll Be Back" to the series eleven episode "Sweet Bitter Love". Ayola had made a former minor appearance in the show several years prior to being cast as Kyla, and was later asked to return in a more permanent role. She departed from the show after becoming pregnant with her second child.

Kyla is a nurse and single mother, constantly trying to balance her career, her child and her love life. Her storylines see her subjected to domestic abuse by her husband, temporarily lose her son to foster care and become an alcoholic. After getting her life back on track, she departs from Holby, moving to Ghana with her partner Abra Durant (Adrian Edmondson).

In August 2006, Ayola was shortlisted for the "Female Performance in TV" award at the fourth Screen Nation Awards for her portrayal of Kyla, and was granted "Honourable Mention" in the same category the following year. However, the character has also been criticised for the dramaticism of her storylines, and the manner in which they reflect upon real NHS nurses.

Prior to being cast as Kyla, Rakie Ayola had made former appearances in both Holby City and its sister show Casualty - in the former as a patient, in series five, episode 32 "By Any Other Name", and the latter as a patient's relative, in series 13, episode 19, "Trapped". She was approached about returning to Holby City in a more permanent role by BBC casting director Julie Harkin, who was also responsible for casting fellow Holby City newcomers Luke Roberts as Joseph Byrne and Tom Chambers as Sam Strachan. After a series of three meetings, two years after the birth of her first child, she agreed readily, despite being "nervous about signing such a long contract", and having claimed just sixteen months previously that she had no desire to work in any long running serial - lambasting the quality of long-term recurring characters by stating: "I watch lots of soaps and love watching them but I often think how frustrating it must be when they make a character into such an idiot. I think it would drive me mad to pick up a script and think, 'Who am I kissing now?'"

Ayola has since explained that her change of heart stemmed from becoming a mother. In the early years of her marriage to fellow actor Adam Smethurst the couple struggled financially, and with the added expense of the birth of their daughter, Ayola had been on the verge of giving up her acting career to begin a business franchise. On joining the cast of Holby City, she disclosed: "I've been someone who's loved the uncertainty of acting. I've loved that one month it's Sahara in Morocco and the next I'm doing a stage play, then it's a six-part telly thing. But last summer I started thinking it would be really nice not to have to look for a job every couple of weeks. It would be nice just to stay put for a while. If I'm going to be a working mum I'd rather just be one rather than be one intermittently. And then Holby came along, so I'm very grateful."

Ayola signed a three-year contract to play Kyla, which expired in October 2008. It was announced on 11 October 2008 that she would be departing from the show in order to have a second child. Ayola said of her decision to leave: "It's strange but sad at the same time. I've had a great time and I'll miss it. I made the decision purely because I was pregnant, but I wasn't really ready to put down the character of Kyla. I'm very sorry to have to let her go".

Upon announcing the character's arrival, BBC Publicity described Kyla as a "survivor", someone who had "been through a lot in her life, firstly losing out on her dream career as a runner and then escaping a violent marriage." It was stated: "Kyla is compassionate, feisty, gives others the benefit of the doubt, strong and loyal - but you wouldn't want to cross her. Kyla has a habit of picking the wrong men, she's inflexible once she's made her mind up and can be volatile if pushed. She has come to Holby with her son Max eager to start anew."

From May 2007 onwards, the character was portrayed as increasingly emotionally unstable, having had "her whole world crash down around her", following storylines including the death of her husband, and her son's request to be taken into foster care. As this emotional instability continued and worsened with the abrupt ending of another relationship, the character was seen to develop full blown alcoholism. Series producer Diana Kyle said of the storyline: "It's important we cover topics that are relevant today. Every day, people in the medical profession deal with patients who have drink or drug problems. Plus, the fact that some of the Holby staff are also suffering with these addictions is very pertinent to hospitals in real life." Speaking of Kyla's struggle to deal with her addiction, she added: "She'll work so hard to get her life together. She has a long way to go, but hopefully there's a light at the end of the tunnel..."