May 12, 2020
What motivated you to become an ILD Nurse?
I had been working on Lind Ward at the Royal Brompton for about five years and that involved caring for a lot of ILD patients, prior to working at the Royal Brompton I hadn’t even heard of ILD. When the opportunity came up to apply for the ILD nurse role I jumped at the chance. My predecessor was Lucy Rodriguez who now works for APF and I had had the opportunity to cover for her when she was on leave. When she decided to move on to another role it was an easy decision for me to make to apply.
What or who inspires you?
The way that people deal with the difficulties that their diagnosis brings is always inspiring. So many patients have such a positive outlook on life despite the problems they may be facing.
What’s the most rewarding part of your job?
I love speaking to patients, although it is always busy it is always nice to have ‘chat’outside of the business side of things. Our patient group often have very interesting lives and story’s and it is great when we can find to time to hear about them.
When someone then tells you that having you to speak to makes a difference to them, that is great to hear.
What do you see as the biggest challenges during Covid-19 for ILD patients?
I think it is a time of great anxiety because they are aware that they are in a high risk group. We are always talking about the importance of exercising and keeping as fit as possible and of course not being able to leave home makes this difficult as well.
Do you see nursing changing as a result of Covid-19 in future?
I think there will be changes in how we approach things and there will hopefully be much more focus on what is best for the individual patient rather than sticking to protocols for doing things because that is the way it had always been done.
I also think there will be more focus on managing individuals care as close to home as possible and preventing as much travel to centres. This will mean that patients avoid unnecessary and difficult journeys and that face to face appointments are more available for those who really need them
Is there anything you’d like to say to ILD patients during the Covid-19 pandemic
It is important to still reach out for help and support if you need it.
We are still here at the end of the phone or email if you need advice. I think many people have been trying not to call over the past few weeks for fear that we are too busy to help but that is not the case. It is always busy but we are here to help.
What do you like to do when you’re not working as an ILD Nurse?
When I am not working I am usually out and about walking or running. One of the things I am looking forward to getting back to doing when I can is walking in the mountains, my last trip was to Scotland at the beginning of March. For now I am trying to keep up the running and hopefully the London Landmarks half marathon I was supposed to do and the end of March will be rescheduled for the Autumn.
I will be able to continue to raise money for APF.