An apprentice nurse who always helps others and a clinical scientist with a commitment to helping diagnose patients are our winners of the September You Made a Difference awards.
Angel joined the cancer outpatients team in May 2022 and in January 2024 started the nursing apprenticeship programme. She is in her first year of training, and is developing her skills and knowledge.
Angel works in various haematology and oncology clinics with members of the multidisiplinary team (MDT) including consultants and clinical nurse specialists. Angel has a specialist interest in breast cancer and works closely with the breast clinical nurse specialists team.
Angel is very kind, supports her colleagues and will always help others.
Angel was on her way home after work and saw a lady who had almost slipped out of her wheelchair. She stopped and assisted the lady to sit properly in the chair.
“The lady was unaware of her surroundings. Angel made enquiries and coordinated a response, going out of her way to make sure the patient was in a safe place to await transport.
Angel didn’t walk past, she put the patient and their safety first and went the extra mile. Angel truly reflected the Trust values of Safe, Kind and Excellent.
Clare joined the Trust in January 2004 as a clinical scientist in the cytogenetics team, part of the haematology department. The team later became part of the new haemato-oncology diagnostic service laboratories (HODS) and in 2020 were transferred into the newly formed Cambridge Genomics Laboratory Hub.
Clare enjoys her job and strives to provide the most comprehensive result service possible.
This includes doing additional literature searches regarding the relevance of the results of our genomic tests – as demonstrated by the additional investigation she did in this particular case.
Extracts from Clare’s nomination, submitted by a colleague, said:
“Thanks to Clare's careful assessment of the genetic tests, she discovered an alteration in the patient’s genetic makeup.
“Although this alteration would not be involved in the reason why this test was done, Clare persevered and looked at the patient’s records as far back as 2019.
“Clare discovered that the genetic alteration was responsible for the patient's haematological, dermatological, ophthalmologic and metabolic problems. An alteration that would not normally have been picked up or reported now, was the cause of all the patient’s problems since 2019.
“The most important thing about Clare's finding is that the patient will now benefit from preventive action to avoid early death from a cardiovascular event. It will also put a stop to the patient's search for answers, as now we have an alteration that explains the full clinical picture.
This case demonstrates Clare's commitment to helping diagnose patients and clinical knowledge beyond what would be expected. A perfect example of when colleagues go the extra mile to enable others to provide excellent patient care.