Queen Alexandra Hospital Pride of Portsmouth awards: Starfish nurses recognised for care of teenager with cancer

NURSES at Queen Alexandra Hospital have been praised for their ‘exceptional’ care of a teenager living with cancer.
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The Starfish Nurses received recognition for their ‘phenomenal’ work during the virtual Pride of Portsmouth Awards, for which they were nominated in The News’ Patients’ Choice category and came runners-up.

Care home owner, Eve, from Portchester put forward the team for their compassion towards her 16-year-old daughter Tona who was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in October 2019.

The Starfish nursesThe Starfish nurses
The Starfish nurses
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Eve said: ‘She has had treatment between Southampton and Portsmouth over the last couple of years but not much in Portsmouth until May this year. She came into QA with an infection which went from bad to worse. she was here here a week then had to go to Southampton for nine weeks.

‘She came back in August and she has been in the care of staff ever since. Although she is now in remission from cancer it is the effects of the chemotherapy that make her poorly. because the chemotherapy lowers your immunity she got an infection that resulted in gut failure. She is being fed intravenously and in a lot of pain and keeps getting infections. At the moment she has had to have main line removed because she had an infection. This means she's not able to have any nutrition until the line is back in.

‘She has been in here such a long time and the nurses really understand her needs and fears. She developed a needle phobia and they have worked with her to build her trust.

‘She's got seven or eight key nurses that know her absolutely inside out and the best things for her. They are always thinking outside the box in terms of what it is she needs.

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‘They have thought about activities with her using their breaks to take her outside so she can feel the fresh air for a bit. They do silly dances with her every single day and are so supportive to me. Even though they are busy they will sit down and have a chat with me.

‘Everyone knows the whole staff within the hospital are working as hard as they can in difficult circumstances. But whatever is going on with the world they are always professional and always going above and beyond. They never let it affect their patient care.’

Staff Nurse Steph Betts said: ‘It has been a very challenging few months in the Paediatric Department so it was a real honour to be nominated for The News’ Patients Choice award. It has been a privilege caring for and supporting the family who nominated us and we are delighted that they feel happy with the care they have received.

‘It would not be possible to be able to provide such a high standard of care without the support of our HCAs and nurses on both CAU and Shipwreck. Well done team Paediatrics!’

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Senior sister Jess Dodgson added: ‘It was an absolute honour to be nominated for The News’ Patients Choice award after such a challenging year. It is a privilege to be part of this team and work with such an amazing group of professionals.’

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