Livewell Southwest nurses Rebecca Finch and Kate Howard have been honoured with the title of Queen’s Nurse.
The award recognises commitment to high standards of patient care, learning, leadership and practice, and is for nurses working in the community for more than five years.
Rebecca and Kate were presented with their certificates by Dame Elizabeth Anionwu, Queen’s Nurse Institute Vice President and Patron of the Mary Seacole Trust, at the prestigious Queen’s Nurse Award ceremony at Friends House in London.
Rebecca Finch with Dame Elizabeth Anionwu. Credit: Queen’s Nurse Institute
Rebecca Finch, Registered Nurse & Integrated Operational Lead for our South/East Localities and Care Home Liaison Team said: “I love working with and nursing patients in their own homes. Over the years I have progressed through the different nursing roles and I am now in a role where I am influencing change within the District Nursing service to improve the quality of care our patients receive.
“The Queen’s Nurse award personally means to me a recognition of the work that I do and that I am getting it right. Professionally it means that I am part of a network that I can continually learn from and have a voice in shaping our community services across the country and at home in Livewell.”
Kate Howard with Dame Elizabeth Anionwu. Credit: Queen’s Nurse Institute
Kate Howard, Registered Nurse & Community Outreach Sister with the Health Inclusion Pathway said: “My role is dedicated to offering outreach health and support to those experiencing homelessness within the city. I am the only nurse in the city to have worked within this role and for me, being part of a wider community of Queen’s Nurses will allow for support and engagement. The Queen’s Nurse Institute is known for work it dedicates to homeless communities and being able to reach out to those professionals also working in this sector will support my role going forwards and allow for development of the service.
“Not only is being awarded this title a great success both personally and professionally, but it demonstrates my commitment to my patients, as well as ensuring health inclusion for those most vulnerable in society.”
Kim Beattie, Sian Chapman, Jacqui Connell, Sarah Gardner, Sara Kirkup, Shirley McAuliffe and Helen Waddington from Livewell Southwest have also been honoured with the Queen’s Nurse award in 2023.
Kim Beattie. Credit: Livewell Southwest
Kim Beattie, Modern Matron for West Devon said: “I feel a great sense of personal pride in receiving the award and feel it is a true recognition of the commitment I have given to my role as a community nurse over the years. The future possibilities as a Queen’s Nurse are an exciting new challenge.
“Professionally, I am privileged to be in such great company of Livewell Queen’s Nurses who were inspirational to my application.”
Sian Chapman. Credit: Livewell Southwest
Sian Chapman, Registered Nurse and District Nursing Team Manager said: “I am passionate about driving personalised care and delivering evidence-based practice into the District Nursing teams and was inspired to become part of a larger network of like-minded people to support the ongoing innovations in care to support patients and colleagues.
“I am over the moon and so immensely proud to have been awarded the title of Queen’s Nurse and feel very privileged to be part of a network of amazing nurses.”
Jacqui Connell. Credit: Livewell Southwest
Jacqui Connell, Advanced Health Improvement Practitioner with the Wellbeing Team said: “I applied for the Queen’s Nursing Award to help raise the profile of the role of Registered Nurses within the Wellbeing Team at Livewell Southwest, as often people are not aware that there are nurses working in the field of health improvement, or the contribution they are making to the team.
“Personally, I am proud for having my contribution to community nursing acknowledged and I look forward to contributing to the Queen’s Nurses and wider community.”
Sarah Gardner. Credit: Livewell Southwest
Sarah Gardner, Public Health Nursing Service Manager said: “I am passionate about the health and wellbeing of children, young people and families and that they receive the highest standard of evidence-based care. I want to champion and raise awareness of the excellent care and commitment the public health nursing service provide to our local communities.
“Personally, I feel very honoured and proud to be awarded the Queen’s Nurse title. Professionally it will be an excellent resource to be part of a professional network of Public Health Nurses who are committed to high standards of care, learning leadership and practice.”
Sara Kirkup. Credit: Livewell Southwest
Sara Kirkup, Children’s Professional Lead said: “I have been in a privileged position working with children, young people and families for a large portion of my career. My passion has been to contribute to drive best practice with an aspiration to provide the very best health care for children and young people.
“I qualified as a nurse in 1991 working in a variety of roles and settings throughout my career, meeting amazing people along the way.
“I was delighted to receive this honour and feel it is a recognition of my dedication and contribution within the field of children, young people and families. Whilst it recognises my personal contribution, I also feel it is the recognition of all nurses in children, young people and family services.”
Shirley McAuliffe. Credit: Livewell Southwest
Shirley McAuliffe, Registered Nurse with the Community Crisis Response Team (CCRT) said: “I have worked within community nursing for approximately 38 years and never considered the possibility I might have the qualities required to be a Queen’s Nurse. However, with the support and encouragement of my CCRT colleagues I was inspired to apply.
“Throughout my career I have always strived to deliver the highest standards of nursing care with compassion, dedication, commitment and embracing change. Becoming a Queen’s Nurse makes me part of a network of nurses who are equally as committed to delivering the highest standards of care in the community, always putting our patients first.
“As a member of the Queen’s Nurse Institute, I aim to inspire the next generation of Student Nurses and Trainee Nursing Associates to ensure the highest standard of community nursing and patient care is maintained.”
Helen Waddington. Credit: Livewell Southwest
Helen Waddington, Registered Nurse & Community Sister with the Lower Limb Treatment Clinic, said: “I was inspired to apply to be a Queen’s Nurse by my colleagues who were previously successful in gaining this title and are fantastic role models and champions of a high standard of care provision in the community.
“It is an honour to receive this title and I am proud to consider myself as a Queen’s Nurse.
“It has been a privilege to help develop the Lower Limb Service since its launch in 2018 and lead product evaluations and research. I find my role as a Community Sister incredibly rewarding and I am grateful to be working with such a forward thinking and supportive team of nurses and healthcare assistants, as well as the wider multidisciplinary team.”
Shona Cornish, Queen’s Nurse and Livewell Nursing Professional Lead, said: “All those who have received the award this year should be justly proud of their achievement.
“I am delighted yet more of the Livewell nursing family have been awarded this prestigious award. Whilst these are personal achievements, it also demonstrates the value of the nursing profession across the organisation and continues to showcase the value of nursing in Livewell.”
