24 NURSING STARS
Louise Brady Clinical development lead , Royal British Legion care homes
‘ I have been working throughout the Covid-19 outbreak supporting care staff with clinical advice , advocacy , training and development . There has been a strong shift to ensure our communities are abreast with the latest support and guidance . I started this role in January 2020 and transitioned into social care in the midst of the pandemic – touched by the kindness of people , but thrown into the challenges of the social care sector . I am seeing health and care through a new lens . Being a Covid-19 Nursing Star requires great strength in swift decisionmaking , the skillset to be able to be adaptable to the changing crisis . I am proud and humbled to be supporting anticipatory care planning , working with staff and families in palliative care , and witnessing excellence in end-of-life care .’
Claire Carmichael Practice nurse , Hampshire
‘ A lot has changed since this outbreak . We are seeing fewer patients . This gives us time to deep clean between each person . We closed our doors and patients wait in the car park 2m away from each other . We wear full PPE and we change it each time . I have started doing home visits to our shielded patients . As soon as I heard Covid-19 had entered the UK , I took my own precautions such as deep cleaning between patients and hand washing a lot more than I normally would . I didn ’ t wait for further guidance as I worked in infectious diseases for almost six years . I have also been making welfare calls to patients to ensure they are okay during this tough time . However , I couldn ’ t have done this without the amazing team around me .’
Naomi Berry Newly qualifi ed GPN in Bradford , West Yorkshire
‘ I have had to learn very quickly how to support patients and staff members . PPE has been the biggest challenge as at fi rst we only received masks , gloves and aprons but no shields or face protection . During this time , I located face shields and sourced scrubs for all the staff . There has also been a signifi cant change to our clinics : I spend one day seeing patients face to face and then four days at home phoning the vulnerable and at-risk patients to ensure they have enough food and medication . I feel my work with vulnerable and at-risk patients is something I have strived hard to complete since the start of lockdown . I have worked closely with Health Action Local Engagement ( HALE ) in Bradford ; it has supported our patients to access enough food and medication . The feedback from patients has been phenomenal .’
Nicola McKenzie Representative of an advanced practice nurse team in Glasgow
‘ Our usual role is to support residential care , assessing patients with acute needs such as chest or urinary infections . During the first wave of the pandemic , we managed 600 patients in care homes and did our best to support relatives and staff . With Covid hitting our care homes , we felt very isolated and were watching people deteriorate very quickly day after day . Our team found this incredibly difficult , and at first families couldn ’ t be with their loved ones at the end , so that became our job . My team deserves this award for determination and passion as well as the bond we now have . We have worked tirelessly throughout Covid – weekends , starting early and finishing late , worrying about what we might bring home to our families . However , we have made it through .’
nursinginpractice . com Winter 2021