HOHC: Tina Fitzgerald (International Day of the Nurse)

“My mum is a nurse, and I spent a lot of time going to work with her when I was younger. She’s always had a passion and love for her patients – they admired her, I admire her. If I wrote a piece of work in primary school, it was always ‘I’m going to be a nurse.’

“As I grew up, I worried I couldn’t do it academically, but I pushed myself – I knew there was nothing else I wanted to do.

“After I qualified, I went straight into surgery as a surgical nurse. I really enjoyed it but wanted more patient contact, to be able to talk to patients and their families. So I moved to Outpatients – and loved it. You are with a patient throughout their journey, from GP referral to diagnosis and treatment.

“I brought my surgery head with me to Outpatients – and a colleague and I did a Masters in Skin Surgery. We now run a nurse-led minor ops surgery list for Dermatology twice a week, as well as a wound care clinic. We are hoping to do another module next year to be able to recognise skin lesions and rashes, then we’ll be able to diagnose as well as treat!

“We are a very close team – we have an open door policy and that didn’t change during Covid. It’s been a difficult time and has stretched our leadership skills to support staff, but we had to adapt and find a way.

“As members of our team were redeployed to the wards, we would find time for them to visit the ward first so they could meet the team and get acquainted with the ward. We would check in on them daily and encourage them to come back to the department for a socially distanced lunch.

“Looking after the team’s mental health was very important. We had a WhatsApp group to keep in touch, and with the help of the Trust’s Staff Counselling Lead, held sessions after both waves to talk about how we felt and help us move forward. During these reflections, the staff mentioned how proud they are of their achievements, and how they rose to the challenge.

“Every time a staff member came back to the team, we would welcome them back with balloons and a certificate. We also have a pinboard with photos of all the team from when they were on the ward. It’s a part of our lives we can’t forget – and we are so proud of them!”

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