International Day of the Nurse and Midwife 2020: Reflections from PGS Parents

PGS parents, Rose Lucas, Clare Smith, Amelia Glover and Paula Jones reflect on aspects of nursing, midwifery and social care - to mark International Day of the Nurse (12th May) and International Day of the Midwife (5th May). 

Image by Banksy, created for Southampton General Hospital

Rose Lucas: 

I became a nurse in 1983 after studying for a degree in History from the University of Manchester. This may seem a strange route into a profession that is frequently viewed as being merely “practical” and one that does not require much thought or analytical skills. I would disagree with this view, however, and suggest that the skills required in nursing are nothing if not wide-ranging but, most of all, based upon humanity. It has been my immense privilege to become close to so many people from so many varied backgrounds who are all looking for help and support at a time when they feel vulnerable and, frequently, frightened.

In the Health Service we all play our parts and, in general, have the utmost respect for the different roles carried out by our colleagues. Doctors are called on for their diagnostic or surgical skills, physiotherapists for their assistance in a recovery process and so forth. I would suggest that nurses have found a sudden turn of admiration at this moment as we become so very close to patients and families during the time spent in conversation and quiet whilst performing the most personal of care. I can still recall many conversations from decades ago. A frail and dying old lady who told me of her marriage when she was only 18 years old during the First World War. Her husband was killed soon after they were married but she told me that no-on could match him so she “never looked at another man again”. Stories shared at a time of vulnerability that I still reflect upon.

I work as a cancer nurse specialist now. I help those with a cancer diagnosis navigate their pathway through the care and treatment they are offered. We get to know these patients from the moment they are told the very news that most of us dread hearing, but will hear, at some point in our lives either about ourselves or those we love. We follow them through their treatment, frequently these days into periods of long remission, and sometimes to an end that we try to ensure is peaceful and kind.

Nursing can be a challenge. It can be hard slog and the rewards can seem slight and few but the comments from patients never fail to make us all aware that our job has been worth it for the difference we have made to someone else. I have never regretted my early career choice despite leaving it for many years. It has provided a rare view of humanity (not always entirely perfect) but one I cherish and has given me strength and support through life. I hope that the current spotlight encourages others to join this profession and pursue a career that is varied, can be exhausting, hilarious at times, and one that gives an insight into people at a time when we are asked to give them the care we all deserve. 

Clare Smith:

International Nurses Day - Recognising great care in community child health services

It’s hard not to communicate the value of nurses on International Day of the Nurse without setting this within the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic. Our current situation might cause us to overlook the essential work that our community nurses do for children and families every day.

The work that nurses in community child health carry out includes the direct face-to-face care that we see on our television screens. In addition to this, our nurses are an essential part of a closely-knit safety net that we weave for children and young people in our community - to help to keep them safe from harm and maintain healthy lives.

Our vision is that children can live their own very best lives and grow to become their best adult selves in terms of their health and development. Where there are barriers to this vision, our mission is to use our skills in healthcare to work with partners in other services and help to break them down. These barriers may be due to illness, disease, long term health conditions or special educational needs. Others, such as poverty, limited opportunities or abuse, though not caused by health, have an impact on a child’s health, wellbeing and opportunity.

Covid-19 has not stopped the presence of the many real, non-covid related health needs that children and young people face every day. In addition, new barriers to getting help have emerged, for example, as a result of not accessing usual services due to social distancing measures or fear of going to hospital because of Coronavirus. Our nurses have been working hard since lockdown, developing new ways of working so we can identify children and families that need help and act quickly to put that help in place.

Sometimes all that is needed is reassurance. Families with young children who are sick and need to go to hospital have been supported by our community children’s nursing team with information and guidance on how to care for children at home, preparing for and going to hospital when needed. Families have told our nurses that this reassurance in the community was just what they needed to be able to take their child to hospital safely if they needed to do so.

Sometimes, looking for children whose needs might be hidden because of the lockdown can help ensure that the right help can go out to families who might be struggling. Our nurses are working in teams with doctors, therapists, colleagues in the council and education and with charities to identify and support families with giving children the essentials they need to keep safe, physically and mentally, and to support their health and development.

Because of Covid, some of the face-to-face work that we routinely do in schools, children and family hubs and community clinics has had to reduce. Our nurses, have been working in new and different ways so that they can continue to provide the essential services that children need right now. Compassion and patient-centred care doesn’t always come in the form of a uniformed nurse on a hospital ward. Each day I see nurses, therapists and doctors carrying out compassionate care through home visiting, video or telephone consultations, working with families to develop the right information and guidance and working through others who are in contact with the children needing support.

I would like to take the opportunity on this International Day of the Nurse to personally thank all the clinicians that I work with in Community Children and Families Services, for their constant and unwavering commitment, even in the face of this pandemic, to keeping children safe and healthy.

Dr Clare Smith is the Service and Quality Manager of Community children’s nursing and medical services, at Solent NHS Trust (Solent East). She is also a speech and language therapist.

Amelia Glover: 

A reflection from a former member of the caring professions: our daughter Mia Glover turned eighteen on 5th May 2020 which is International Day of the Midwife - I, her mother , am a former Midwife , how very clever of Mia to arrive on that day ! 

Paula Jones:

During lockdown, my daughter AJ (Year 7) thought it was important to learn how to help those around us and to be able to use other means of communication to do so.

As a result, AJ has just completed a qualification in British Sign Language. This is usually an adult course, and has taken her some time to do; she had to complete 10 separate modules and then take an overarching test. A particular challenge was the final assessment, which covered aspects from the previous ten units and showed a range of scenarios in video form, which AJ had to answer questions about. There were five particular questions that she found difficult to understand due to the use of different tenses and so had to attempt them several times before she was able to meet the overall pass rate of 85%.  This was also the pass rate for each of the modules and she couldn't move on until each module had been passed.

AJ started the course towards the end of March and attained her qualification on 10th May.; she is very proud of her achievement, as you can see. It was estimated to be around 2 hours per module, and she did some of the earlier modules in the days before virtual school started and then continued at the weekends. This undertaking has taught AJ perseverance at the highest level.