Waveney nurses receive special honour

Two staff at East Coast Community Healthcare have been awarded the title of Queen’s Nurse by the community nursing charity The Queen’s Nursing Institute (QNI).

Lead Nurse for Waveney Primary Care Network Shona Andrews and Locality Lead for Lowestoft Primary Care Network Kate Spence were presented with their awards at two Queen’s Nursing Institute awards ceremonies in London.

The title of Queen’s Nurse demonstrates a commitment to high standards of patient care, learning and leadership. It is open to registered nurses with more than five years’ experience working in the community, and the application process requires feedback from patients and managers.

Dr Crystal Oldman CBE, Chief Executive of the QNI said: “Queen’s Nurses serve as leaders and role models in community nursing, delivering high quality health care across the country. The application and assessment process to become a Queen’s Nurse is rigorous and requires clear commitment to improving care for patients, their families and carers. We look forward to working with all new Queen’s Nurses who have received the title this year.”

Kate has been a nurse for 33 years, starting out as a staff nurse on a Neurosurgical ward at Addenbrookes Hospital and working as a Senior District Nurse in Newcastle upon Tyne before joining ECCH in 2015. She now leads a multi-disciplinary team of nurses and therapists supporting Lowestoft Primary Care Network, one of four ‘hubs’ set up by ECCH in April to support GP practices in Norfolk and Waveney. 

Shona began her career In Southend on Sea in the year 2000, moving to Norfolk the following year when she took up her first Community Nursing job with ECCH’s Beccles team, and going on to complete her district nursing training in 2005. Shona is now the Lead Nurse for Waveney Primary Care Network and over the last 4 years has supported those undertaking the Specialist Practitioner Qualification for District Nursing (SPQDN).

Shona said: “From the days of my nurse training I have always known that my ‘heart and home’ is in Community Nursing and I cannot imagine working anywhere else. Nursing is an amazing and very fulfilling career which offers the ability to truly make a difference in our patients’ and their families’ lives, even if that difference is fleeting. I am delighted to have been awarded the title of Queen’s Nurse and consider it to be a fantastic opportunity to celebrate being a community nurse, and reinforce our commitment to continuously improving quality and promoting person-centred care.”

Kate said: “I have always felt nursing people at home is very special. I am passionate about delivering evidence based nursing in the community and have followed the work of the QNI for many years. It is a great privilege to become an ambassador for community nursing as a Queen’s Nurse.

“ECCH has previously given presentations on two of our nursing initiatives at recent QNI conferences and I am excited about the prospect of working with other Queen’s Nurses developing and promoting this most important area of nursing practice.”

ECCH Chief Executive Jonathan Williams said: “We are thrilled that Kate and Shona have been given this prestigious title. They are both completely dedicated to providing high quality nursing. They are also really inspirational leaders, constantly looking for innovative solutions to improve the services we offer and working so hard to ensure their teams are happy and providing the best possible care to our patients. It is very well deserved.”

The Queen’s Nursing Institute is a registered charity founded in 1887. There are almost 1,400 Queen’s Nurses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The QNI works with nurses and decision makers to ensure that good quality nursing is available to everyone, when they need it.