“My name is Jenny, and I’m one of the staff nurses at St Clare, working on our Inpatient Unit.”
“Before coming to St Clare I worked at my local hospital on a number of different wards, but each time with acutely ill patients. I have also worked as a health care assistant on a maternity ward and as a caring assistant for adults with learning difficulties. I have gained great experience from all of my previous jobs but they weren’t for me – as I always knew that I wanted to work in palliative care.”
“It was after my Dad was diagnosed with Bowel cancer that I realised that I wanted to train to be a nurse, and now I have been a qualified nurse for 3 years.”
“When I was a student nurse I had a 6 week placement at another hospice. My initial thought was the same as what most people would think about a hospice – ‘oh no, a hospice, it’s going to be really sad’ but after being there for just a day I realised how wrong I was. I loved my placement at the hospice and by the end of the 6 weeks I knew that was the area that I wanted to specialise in.”
“It made me realise how different hospice care is compared to anywhere else, and how special it is to share those moments with patients and their families.”
“The team here at St Clare are all amazing, everyone from the doctors, the nurses to the health care assistants – they are all so knowledgeable and experienced. I also think the volunteers are amazing, the fact that they take time out of their day to come and help out is just inspiring. It’s such a great relationship between everyone, there is no hierarchy and everyone is on the same level, it’s really nice.”
“I absolutely love it here. Now that I’ve worked at St Clare I can never imagine myself working anywhere else.”
“The thing that amazes me about my job at St Clare is the amount of humour that everyone has.”
“Everyone is always laughing, it’s such a happy place and so different to what people would think a hospice is like.”
“The team are always so bubbly and have such a laugh with each other and the patients. Once we get to know the patients they really come out of their shell and they are happy and cracking jokes all the time. It’s nice to see them smiling regardless of what they are going through.”
“When we say we offer holistic care here at St Clare, we really mean it. When working here you know that you have done everything that you possible could do for that patient and their family.”
“I walk out of St Clare each day thinking I’ve done a good day’s work, it’s so rewarding. The reason any nurse goes into nursing is because you want to care for people and you want to make a difference. Previously I’ve not felt like I’ve achieved that to the best standard that I can, until I came here.”
“At St Clare I care for up to 4 patients during my entire shift, so I have time to spend with them and care for them, rather than having to take care of a whole ward. Working at a hospice gives you the time with a patient that they need and deserve. It means that you can actually sit and talk to them and their families.”
“It is so nice to see the way that patients and their families relax as soon as they get here and settle in.”
“I speak to so many people that say how frightened they were to come to St Clare and that they didn’t want to come, but they soon tell me how glad they are that they did. They always say how it wasn’t what they were expecting and they can’t praise St Clare enough. People worry that going to a hospice means that it is the end, but that isn’t the case because not everyone that comes here requires end of life care.”
“Everyone that we care for is at different stages in their illnesses, whether it is controlling someone’s pain and sending them home again or caring for someone who does needs end of life care – it is always rewarding.”
“Just knowing that I was able to make a small difference at the end of a patient’s journey means a lot to me, even if that just means holding their hand, if that is what they need.”
“I’ve realised that food is such a big thing to a lot of patients, a lot of them come here without an appetite and as soon as you explain to them that we have a chef here that will make them whatever they want they can’t believe it! When you’re poorly you don’t always want a set menu. It’s nice that they have the option to eat whatever they fancy and you can really see the difference in them after a few days of getting their appetite back. The chef will come round to speak to each patient and see what they can tempt them with, they are amazing. Even if the patient only has one bite of their meal, it’s great that they’ve had something that they’ve wanted.”
“It may sound corny but that’s what you go into nursing for – to care, and to see that change, and to do that little bit to help a person.”
“St Clare is just such a wonderful place. It’s nothing to be afraid of at all, we make it like a home from home. It’s just like being at home but with that nursing care available for when you need it. The staff are all friendly and welcoming and there are no pressures – we are there to provide individual care for each patient and their needs.”
“I think I have got the best job in the world, and definitely the best nursing job in the world!”
– Jenny
